Change
by katiesparks
Summary: AU She loved him. He liked her. She changed him. He broke her. People aren’t toys to be played with, but he remembers this a little too late. Not all fairytales have happy endings. But, then again, some do. HK KA SR
1. Prelude

Lying in his bed alone, Hattori Heiji, Prince of the West and heir to the throne, wondered where he'd gone wrong. But as soon as the thought crossed his mind he shoved it back down, he knew exactly what had happened and he knew it was his fault from the very beginning. All his fault and they'd all tried so hard to warn him.

But now he was alone, his bed was cold and he felt as though his heart had been torn straight from his chest and ripped into raw, bleeding pieces. And he still felt as though he got the better end of the deal. All the pain he'd put her through, it dug into him now, in the quiet of his own room, with no witnesses to tell of how the Prince Who Had No Feelings was suffering. Every wound he'd ever inflicted upon her soul was coming back at him and he beared the assault with honor, letting the memories come as he tortured himself.

"_I warned you, Hattori, I fucking warned you that you'd get hurt too. But do you listen to me? Do you ever listen to your best friend, even when you __**know **__he's right? No, because you're just too damn full of yourself, I can't even bear to look at you!"_

"_Go away, Hattori-kun, I'm not on your side in this. You had something going for you and you ruined it. I hope you're happy. I hope it was worth it to you. Goodbye."_

"_Well, your plan worked perfectly, __**Your Highness**__, don't you feel good about yourself now? Don't you feel like you're such a great person? Don't speak to me! Don't even look at me! I feel dirty even standing close to you! It all worked out just like you planned except you're hurting too and I'm glad for it! Wallow in your misery, Hattori Heiji, Prince of the West! Wallow in it until it consumes you!"_

"_Don't touch me! All this time, I thought you loved me! I let down my defenses and let you through and how am I repaid? With lies and pain! I hope you're happy with yourself, you broke me in so many ways, so many and I actually thought you loved me. I truly believed it. Don't look for me. I never want to see you again. And you'll never see us again, I'm leaving tonight and I'll kill us both before I stay here, so send your guards after me, death would be a welcome change from this hell. They'll have to put me in the gallows, for I refuse to bend to your will any longer."_

So he lay there and let her words sting him because somewhere, along little path of treachery and deception, he'd started to fall for his own game, started to believe himself in love. And when you believe something, sometimes it comes true...

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

**I know, I know, the whole prince!Heiji thing has been done before, but as you can probably see, this is not the normal "Our different social statuses keeps us from our love!!!" story. No, that wouldn't have been such an issue, in truth. No, this will be much different. FYI, this is Kirby's new pet project, so chapters will be short and to the point and it should be finished in about the time it took to finish Arachne, give or take some. Rating may go up. Please, RR!**


	2. Scullery

"So I asked her "What do you think about the prince, Hattori Heiji, I mean, because Shinichi-kun is _so _taken?" and-oh, Heiji-kun, I put your plate over there-and you know what she said?" Sonoko asked Keiko, who was obviously not mopping the hallways like she'd been told, instead, she was down in the kitchen, gossiping with the Head Chef, a fierce young woman by the name of Sonoko.

"What?" Keiko demanded, leaning on the handle of her mop.

"She said, "Well, I guess he's okay but I don't see why you're all falling at his feet!" Can you believe that?" Sonoko asked.

Heiji turned, wondering what they were talking about as he searched for his plate. _'Over there'? That's being specific, Sonoko-kun.'_

Suddenly he felt a tug at his pants leg and looked down to find his favorite of the kitchen staff, Ai, holding a plate out to him. "Genta and Mitsuiko thought that it'd be funny to hide it." She said, pointing to the two boys who were looking put out now that their trick had failed.

Heiji smiled in thanks and took the plate. "Thanks, Ai-chan. Where's Ayumi-chan?"

Ai's eyes grew soft. "Ayumi-chan's sick today, she inhaled too much smoke yesterday crawling through the vent." That was the main reason that the kitchen used mostly children as extra hands. They could fit into small places and do things adults no longer could. And it gave them a place to be, seeing as they were all orphans.

"Oh, maybe I should send someone to check up on her...." Heiji said, thinking aloud. He was fond of the girl and didn't want to see her sick for too long. She tried the hardest out of all of the children, but often ended up sickly because of it. No one blamed her, though, and she was a sweet child.

"Don't fret, Heiji-san, the new chamber maid offered to take care of her, seeing as she didn't have her assignments yet." Ai said as she walked over to the sink and began washing dishes.

"Oh, we've got a new maid? Is she the one Sonoko-kun was talking about?" Heiji asked around a mouthful of eggs and Ai made a face, causing Heiji to close his mouth. When she was older, Heiji was recommending Ai as a nanny, with a look like that; she could get any child to behave.

"That's correct. Apparently she's heard some stories already and doesn't have a very high opinion of you, though she seems to be good at what she does. I wouldn't bother with her." Ai said, fixing him with another look, this one full of suspicion and seeming too old for her face. Sometimes she looked like that and it made Heiji wonder what horrors she had lived through before he'd found her that in the snow that cold January morning, halfway to Death's door and in a hurry to get there. She hadn't been able to do much of anything for a long time, but the Hattori's were kind and benevolent rulers and now she worked for them diligently and with a depth to her eyes that didn't quite fit with her face.

"All stories, Ai-chan." Heiji said.

"Of course." She echoed back. "All stories. But I wouldn't try writing any with this girl. She'll break you in two."

Heiji grinned, his green eyes flashing. "That, Ai-chan, sounded like a challenge."


	3. Cruelty

"Oi, Sonoko-kun!" Heiji said, trotting into the kitchen and waving down the girl, who paused, skillet full of something that smelled delicious, to glance at him.

"Ohayo, Heiji-kun. Breakfast is already over, but I think Ai-chan saved something for you, she's in the scullery doing the dishes." Sonoko said as she went back to her task.

"That's good to know, I'm starving, but that's not why I'm here, I need your help with something." Heiji said, glancing through the small door and spotting Ai-chan at the sink, as usual.

"Me? What could you need me for, its not as though you can have me as your personal chef or anything, but I'm sure there's someone around here who would take up the job, some of the castle maids would die for that kind of job, you know-." Sonoko rambled on before Heiji stuck out a hand to stop her.

"No, not that! I was wondering about the new chamber maid, the one who was taking care of Ayumi-chan and who doesn't have assignments yet?" Heiji said, eyeing the cook.

"Oh, you mean Kazuha-chan! What about her?" Sonoko exclaimed, wondering what kind of juicy gossip the prince was about to tell her.

"Do you know who she's getting assigned to?" Heiji asked and Sonoko grinned discretely.

"I heard Her Majesty would be handling her assignments as soon as Ayumi-chan was well again, as she was doing a fair job as the girl's nursemaid. I actually heard she was considering just making Kazuha-chan a full time nursemaid, she has a pleasing bedside manner, or so I heard. But, apparently, she doesn't think too highly of you, Heiji-kun, she heard some rumors...." Sonoko trailed off.

"All nonsense, of course." Heiji said, with a devil's grin that said quite the opposite.

"Of course." Sonoko chimed back. "Why did you want to know about her?"

"Why, I heard she didn't like me! I take that as a challenge!" Heiji exclaimed and Sonoko nearly face-palmed.

"What exactly are you proposing?" Sonoko deadpanned and Heiji grinned.

"I solemnly swear that I will make this girl, this 'Kazuha-chan', fall in love with me. And you, Sonoko-kun, are going to help me!" Heiji said.

"See something you like?" Sonoko grinned suggestively.

Heiji waved her off. "I haven't even seen her yet, but it wouldn't due for one girl in the castle to not be swayed by my dashingly good looks."

Sonoko frowned. "I refuse to help; you'll break her heart, to make someone fall in love with you just as a way to inflate your ego! I won't stand for it, you can be sure. Not get out of my kitchen before I'm forced to call on Ran-chan!"

"Sonoko-kun...." Heiji started.

"I refuse!" Sonoko demanded, having already turned around to pay more attention to the meal she was making. It was actually a get-well meal for poor Ayumi; Sonoko rather missed the girl's cheerful disposition.

Heiji grabbed her arm and forced her to turn around. "I wasn't _asking_, Sonoko-kun, I _order _you to help me. To do otherwise would be treason."

Sonoko turned a horrible shade of undignified red, before wrenching her arm from his grasp. "Some days, I absolutely _hate _you, _Your Highness,_ I'll help you rather than catch a date with the block, but I think you to be a horrible sort of person and I hope you're happy with that. I thought we were friends of sorts, but your willingness to command me around in such a way proves that theory wrong! I will help you and I will _hate it! _Now, _get out of my kitchen and don't you dare go into the scullery or I shall spit in all of you food from this day forth!"_

Heiji felt her words sting him inside but he didn't let it show on his face as he gave her a grin. "As you wish, Sonoko-kun. Ja ne!"

Sonoko fumed for a few more minutes before calming down some. She looked down to find she had burned the dish slightly and decided that it would not be fit to send a burnt meal as a get-well present. She poured the meat onto a spare plate. "Ai-chan!"

The girl walked in, wiping her hands on a dishcloth. "Yes, Sonoko-sensei?"

Sonoko handed her the plate. "I burnt this slightly, but it should still be pretty good, share it with the boys and pass on this message for me; do not, under any circumstances, treat the _prince_ with anything other than cool formality until I say otherwise. And you may eat the breakfast you saved for him as well; if he comes asking for it, I was mistaken. Do you understand?"

Ai took the plate. "Yes, I understand completely. He is being unnecessarily cruel, is he not?"

Sonoko grimaced. "And not even for a slightly noble reason! He doesn't even know what she looks like! Oh, Ai-chan, how could he do such a thing? I realize he does not understand emotions all that well, that he is young and brash and, most of all, male. But is it possible that he is really this mean-spirited underneath his exterior?"

Ai looked at the plate. "I have a great liking for Heiji-san, but I can say that he has much to learn about the world and about girls. Maybe he'll learn is lesson this time. In the process of hurting others, one often injures thyself."

"How true. You are wise as you are cute, my lovely Ai-chan." Sonoko said and Ai turned, a grimace on her face.

A remark like that was not to be dignified with a comment.


	4. New Rules

"There now, Ayumi-chan, nice and fluffy, is that better?" Kazuha asked after fluffing the girl's pillows. The child's pale face turned to look at her, a slight sheen of sweat on her skin.

"Thank you, Kazuha-neechan." Ayumi said in a voice that sounded like dry leaves before coughing.

"Don't speak, honey, you'll just hurt your throat more that way. Do you need anything? Are you hungry?" Kazuha asked. The girl had nearly been well enough to go back to work when she'd come by a cold bug that had taken advantage of her weaken immune system.

"I'm cold." Ayumi said and Kazuha slid into the bed beside the girl, taking her into her arms and embracing her in an attempt to share her warmth.

"That better?" Kazuha asked and Ayumi nodded.

"Can I have some tea?" Ayumi asked and Kazuha nodded. She tied a robe on the girl and, holding her against her hip, went out into the castle and then down the servant stairs into the scullery, where Ai was washing dishes and the boys were stacking them in their respective places and pulling varying types of food out as Sonoko called for them.

Ai stopped when they entered and smiled easily at the sick child on Kazuha's hip. "Ayumi-chan, Kazuha-neesan. Did you need something? How's the fever?"

"Hello, Ai-chan. Hello Genta-kun, Mitsuiko-kun. We were wondering if we could bother you for some tea. And her fever has gone down since yesterday, she'll probably be up for work again soon enough." Kazuha said with a little smile for the child. She had always thought that children should be dotted on, no matter their social standing and she had taken a liking to the scullery crew. They were sweet children.

Ai set down her dish rag and walked over to a cupboard to pull out a simple wooden cup. Then she smiled at the other females in the room. "I'll go get it. If we don't have any made up, I'll beg of a packet from Sonoko-sensei, she'll give easy enough, we miss you, Ayumi-chan."

"I miss you guys too." Ayumi said in her dry-paper voice and Ai fought against the frown that threatened to come up. She suspected her friend was still quite sick.

While Ai was gone, Genta and Mitsuiko slipped over to tell Ayumi of their newest set of rules.

"Ai-kun said that we aren't allowed to talk to Heiji-niichan anymore." Genta said, using the -niichan honorific since there were no adults around to stop him. Except for Kazuha, of course, but she would figure it to be normal, being new.

"Yeah, Sonoko-sensei said that we have to just be polite, but not nice to him. Like go 'Here is your food, Your Highness.' Instead of 'We got your dinner, Heiji-san!' I don't know why, but the two of them seem to be having a fight, we heard them yelling. Something about a maid...." Mitsuiko trailed off.

"I bet they were talking about Keiko-neesan, she was down here again the other day instead of mopping the halls like she was suppose to be doing. And she's the only maid I can think of that Sonoko-sensei and Heiji-niichan both know and would argue about!" Genta said and Mitsuiko nodded.

"I bet that's right. But those are the new rules! Don't forget, okay?" Mitsuiko said and Ayumi nodded vigorously, but with a sad look in her eye. She had been fond of the prince, he had treated her like one would a younger sister, slipping her small things, little wooden toys from cities he'd been to and tiny candies that she ate after lights out, in the privacy of her room ,where no one would catch her.

"Here, Ayumi-chan. I hope you feel better soon." Ai said, handing Kazuha the cup and smiling at her friend.

"Thank you, Ai-chan. Goodbye, children, I'll come down for our dinners later." Kazuha said, making her way back towards the stairs.

"Don't worry, one of us will bring it up. Ayumi-chan needs to rest and you need to stay with her!" Mitsuiko proclaimed and Kazuha smiled.

"What sweet children you are. Thank you and goodbye!" Kazuha said, closing the door to the stairwell after the chorus of 'Goodbye!' reached her ears.

Ayumi sipped at her tea as they walked up the stairs. When they reached her bedroom, Kazuha set the girl on her feet and told her to wait there for a moment while she grabbed more blankets. Ayumi leaned against the door jam and sipped at her tea. She would've just gotten into bed herself, but it was a tall bed and, while she could easily climb on top of it normally, she felt to weak to do so now.

She had been there for about a minute when Heiji walked by the room. He spotted her and smiled friendlily. "Oi, Ayumi-chan! Are you feeling better yet?"

Ayumi said nothing, but just stared at him with sad, betrayed eyes. Eventually, he just walked away.


	5. Orders

"Kazuha-san." Her Majesty, the Queen of the West, Hattori Shizuka said and the girl bowed once before straightening.

"Yes, Your Majesty?" Kazuha said and Shizuka looked over the girl with critical eye. She wore a plain brown dress, relatively new, and a white full body apron over it. Somewhere, the girl had found a ribbon and her hair was tied back into a ponytail that swung with each move of her body. _'She is pretty.' _Shizuka thought to herself, imagining the maid in richer clothes. _'If she had been a noble, I would've surely had negotiations with her family by now. How sad that she is not. Maybe she has some sort of blood in her, for past generations....Ah, but that is off topic. I wonder why my son has chosen to switch her as his maid, the maids have told me that he hasn't even seen her yet.' _

"Kazuha-san, I have decided upon your assignments. I thought to put you as a nursemaid, after the wonderful job you did taking care of Ayumi-chan," _'...and what a sweet child that girl is, she has us all wrapped around her little finger. How I wish for a daughter! Or grandchildren. My son is so very stubborn!' _", but something came up, so you are to be a chamber maid, as intended. You will clean my son's room, Hattori Heiji, you know of him, correct?"

Kazuha's face gave the slightest of twitches but otherwise remained impassionate. "I have only heard of the Prince, Your Highness, I have yet to have to honor of glancing upon his face."

Shizuka gave a slight smile. _'So she does not like my son? How interesting, I'm sure Heiji knows of this too. He's been seen down at the stables lately, taking to my dear Kaito-kun. I swear, that boy knows everything! I shall have to go riding soon and find out things for myself. I wonder how Kaito's wife is; she shouldn't be due for another 5 months or so. I do wish she would take off until the child's born; no reason to stress herself.' _ "I shall have someone show you to his rooms. You will collect the dirty laundry and hand it off to Aoko-san, the laundry woman. Do you know her?"

Kazuha nodded. "I have talked to Aoko-cha, I mean, Aoko-san several times. Should I carry them down to her or will she come to get them from me?"

Shizuka let out the smallest of inaudible sighs. "I would bother you to take them to her, you know of her condition, but she would refuse and come to get them anyways, she is like that. So she will come get them and if not, her husband will. You are also to tidy up, get things off the floor and place them back where they should be. If he has any preferences, he'll tell you, I sure. You must then make the bed, strip the sheets if they are dirty and hand them off with the laundry, you should only have to do that every month or two, and then remake the bed with fresh ones. Finally, sweep the fhe floors, mop if necessary and you should be done. Do not worry about his clothes or bathroom; he has other people for those chores. Anything else extra that needs to be done, Heiji, myself, or Heizo, will inform you in time to accomplish it. Do you understand your duties?"

"Yes, Your Majesty." Kazuha said.

"Very well. And one last thing, Kazuha-san. If you would like to call me by Shizuka, it would not be out of place. Most everyone refers to me as Shizuka-sama or Shizuka-dono; you are welcome to do the same." Shizuka said with a friendly type of look while still maintaining her aloof disposition.

"Of course, Shizuka-sama. Thank you very much." Kazuha said, bowing and leaving the large chamber.

Shizuka sat in her throne for a minute or two longer. _'I do not feel like riding. I am the Queen, I shall simply call Kaito to me. I demand to know what is going on.' _ "Ootaki."

The man appeared at her side at once. "Yes, Shizuka-san?"

"Call Kaito-the sable hand-in here, it's time to get to the bottom of this. If he is busy, get one of the others to fill in for him. If he is tending to his wife, tell him I expect him before breakfast tomorrow." Shizuka said and Ootaki smiled.

"Of course, Shizuka-san. At once."


	6. Arrivals

"Hattori!" a voice called and Heiji turned around to see Kudo Shinichi, Prince of the East, and his wife, former peasant Mouri Ran, approaching him.

"Kudo! Neechan! How was your trip?" Heiji asked, glad to see his friends again. They were staying the year at the Hattori castle, to "negotiate with the West about politics" was the official reason, but everyone who was anyone knew they were simply there to goof off away from the pressure of the entire Eastern kingdom breathing down their necks about producing an heir.

"Hattori-kun!" Ran said, taking his face in between her hands and kissing both his cheeks. "How nice to see you again! It's been too long!"

"Likewise, Neechan. Kudo been treatin' you okay?" Heiji asked, smiling at her and she smiled back.

"Of course, he's been perfect, as always, I, on the other hand, have been a bumbling mess! I took much to long to learn all the proper manners and I'm sure I insulted some of the guests at the castle with my obvious rudeness and you just wouldn't beli-!"

"She's done a great job, don't listen to a word she says, she's just fishing for complements." Shinichi said, cutting her off.

Heiji grinned and clapped his friend and fellow prince on the back. "Its going to be great with you guys here! Well have to go riding sometime soon, I know a great place, it has a waterfall and everything and in the summer it's the absolute best place in the kingdom to go for fishing and swimming!"

"Sounds great, but isn't Kaito-kun your stable hand?" Shinichi asked with a raised eyebrow, remembering the young man who'd acted like Heiji's personal servant last time the dark skinned teen had visited the East.

"Yeah, so?" Heiji asked.

"Pass, then. I wouldn't trust any animal that that guy sets me up with." Shinichi said.

"Now, that's not fair, Kaito-kun's great with the animals-." Heiji started to defend the other young man when he was cut off.

"Heiji-kun! _Heiji-kun!_" a voice called and he turned to see Aoko sitting on the ground about twenty yards behind him. She waved her arms at him and called his name again.

"Ah, hold on a minute, Kudo, Neechan. I'm coming, Aoko-chan!" Heiji called sprinting over to the woman on the grass.

Shinichi and Ran watched as the two talked. Heiji attempted to help her to her feet, but she couldn't support herself at all. He lowered her back to the ground and then waved his visiting friends over.

"Kudo, Neechan, this is Aoko-chan, she the laundry maid for all the nobles. She's also pregnant and married to Kaito-kun, who I need to go get. Please stay with her while I'm gone, thanks!" he said, before running off towards the other side of the castle, towards the stables.

Aoko considered the royalty in front of her. "You bear a striking resemblance to my husband, Your Majesty."

Shinichi laughed. "I can't remember the last time someone called me 'Your Majesty'. Please, call me Shinichi-kun, everyone does. This is my wife, Ran."

Ran knelt down. "Call me Ran-chan. How far along are you?"

"About 4 months, but I've always been a bit on the fragile side, ever since I've gotten pregnant I've been prone to dizzy spells at even the slightest upset. I actually mistook your husband as mine and thought him to be committing adultery, though he would never do such a thing and I know it. One cannot trust their eyes these days." Aoko laughed.

"Yes, I remember Kaito-kun did look a lot like Shinichi, but they were always dressed differently, so I could tell. But from a distance I might've made the same mistake myself." Ran said, laughing along with the other girl.

"I remember hearing a rumor about the East getting an heir soon, you are not....are you?" Aoko said and Ran waved her hand back and forth.

"No, no, not even close. I'm not even sure if I'm ready for that but it will happen when it will happen. Do you know the gender of yours?" Ran asked.

"The castle sorceress is one of my closest friends, Akako-chan. She says all signs point to it being a boy and I've never been one to doubt her." Aoko said, smiling.

"_Aoko!"_ a voice called and they turned to see Kaito running in their direction, Heiji closely behind him.

He got to them and dropped down beside Ran. "Are you okay? You didn't trip or anything, did you?"

"I'm fine, I just had a bit of a shock and had a dizzy spell; I'll be okay." Aoko said and Kaito smiled at her.

"Great, I was worried. What shocked you?" Kaito asked.

Aoko looked guilty. "I did not mean to think it, but I spotted our guests from afar."

Kaito looked somewhere between hurt and sympathetic. "It's okay, I forgive you. Let's get you back to our room; I'll finish your chores." He picked her up bridal style, as he was fond of doing, and carried her off.

"Oh dear, he looked so hurt!" Ran exclaimed after they had gone.

"He'll be okay; he just was upset she could think of such a thing. She doesn't think she's good enough for him but, personally, I think she's much too good for him. She's the only one who could keep him in line any how." Heiji commented and Shinichi and Ran nodded. "But enough of this drama! Obviously, riding anywhere is out now, I don't trust anyone but Kaito-kun with my horses, take my advice and do the same, but let's show you married folk to your rooms. And then I'll show you where the kitchen is, the scullery crew has been rather cold to me lately, no doubt because of their boss, but they should warm up to you in no time, they are good children. If you ever need anything done down there, ask for Ai-chan or Ayumi-chan, the boys are pranksters."

So they walked towards the great castle doors, not ever noticing the shy maid under the shadow of a nearby tree watching them, wondering just who this Hattori Heiji, Prince of the West, was and why she felt as though she had to figure him out.


	7. Adagio

_"Where is Kazuha-chan?" Aoko gasped in between contractions as she squeezed Kaito's hand._

_"Don't worry about it right now, honey. Push!" He said as the midwife made the signal and his wife obeyed._

_"Where is she?" she gasped._

_"Push, Aoko!" Kaito said again and as she did he answered her question as best he could. "No one but Ran-chan knows and she refuses to tell."_

_"You know!" she screamed and pushed harder as she felt her nails drawing blood in his palm._

_"I do. Calm down, Aoko, deep breaths. Remember what the midwife said." Kaito cautioned and she gasped again and grunted._

_"Then where? Is she okay? And the-." She cut her self off as the air left her body after a particularly painful contraction._

_"She's fine, they both are. Trust me." Kaito said and she squeezed his hand even harder, cracking his knuckles._

_"Always. And Heiji-kun?" she choked out, her voice venomous while still expressing her concern, even through the pain._

_"Last I heard he was wallowing in his room, refusing all guests and all of his meals and refusing to rise from bed. Ah, damn it Aoko, push!" Kaito said as the midwife made desperate movements._

_Aoko did with a grunt and a cry pierced the air. Aoko sagged against the bed and Kaito cradled her face in his hands. "You did great, love."_

_"Let me see him." She demanded and she was handled a swathed bundle. "Mamoru."_

_"Mamoru, I like the sound of that." Kaito agreed with her, sitting on her bed and looking down at his newborn son. Aoko stifled a yawn and Kaito smiled gently at his wife, taking the baby from her arms and using his other to push her against the bed. "Rest. He'll still be here when you wake up, I promise."_

_"Do you really?" she said, thinking of the babies they'd lost before, lost them before they were even people, before they'd even had names. Stillborns, they called them; my babies, she called them. Out behind the castle, in plot of land where she had planted a dozen flowers, they lay. She loved them. But she loved this baby too, this baby, who was still breathing as she looked at him for the first time._

_"Yes, on my life, I do. Now sleep." He said and she believed him, so she closed her eyes wearily._

_"Oh, what will become of Kazuha-chan if she must go through this on her own?" she asked and her mouth felt dry as she spoke the words, already asleep enough to where she would barely remember saying them come morning and where she couldn't possible recall Kaito's answer._

_"Don't worry, my love, she won't. I will make sure of that. Heiji-kun needs a reality check."_

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

**From here on out, musical terms represent the fast forwards of the story. Up until now, we have been in the "Before" of this tale, here, we take a glimpse into the "After". **

**Mamoru means 'earth'.**

**Please RR!**


	8. Meeting

Kazuha bustled around the room, gathering the dirty laundry before handing it off to Aoko, who was waiting for it at the door. The laundry maid shot Heiji a warning glare, she'd already heard from Kaito about the prince's plans involving the new maid and she Was Not Amused. Heiji grinned back at her, not promising anything. Aoko rearranged the pile in her arms, sent him one last look and walked away. Heiji chuckled internally, that was Aoko for you, everyone's big sister.

"So, I haven't seen you around before." Heiji said, eyeing her from his position on his bed.

"Please do not start, Hattori-sama, I know of your reputation and I am not going to fall for it. I'm here to clean, nothing else." She said as she straightened things on his desk. Then she moved towards the bed. "Get up so I can remake to bed."

Heiji obeyed with a grin. She wasn't going to make this easy and he was glad for it, a challenge was just what he needed. She briskly striped the sheets off and then remade the bed, fluffing the pillows until they were to her satisfaction. Heiji followed her with his eyes, trailing them up and down her body as she moved about, assured this would be worth it. Her brown dress swung against the back of her legs as she bent over the bed and her hand absentmindedly went back to scratch at her leg, hitching the hem up a little higher.

"Don't be that way, I'm not so bad. What's your name? You obviously already know mine." Heiji asked, walking behind her as she grabbed a nearby broom and began sweeping the stone floor.

"My name? To-Kazuha, my lord." She said, stuttering slightly and Heiji noticed.

"You were about to say something else." Heiji stated and Kazuha sighed.

"My surname, my lord. But castle servants have no surname so I am merely Kazuha." She lamented.

"That's right, you weren't born here, were you? What village did you come from?" Heiji asked and she smiled.

"I came from no mere village. I lived in the city of Kyoto with my father until he passed away." She stated proudly, pride in her origins.

"So what was your surname before you came here?" Heiji questioned.

"I dare not speak it. I have no surname, I am merely Kazuha, the chamber maid." She said and Heiji's grin widened.

"I _order _you to tell me." He said, smirking and she scowled.

"Toyama Kazuha." She said and he nodded.

"That's a nice name. It looks as though you're finished here, Kazuha-san. Come back tomorrow at the same time." He told her and she bowed and started for the door. "Oh, and Kazuha-san?" she stopped. "Call me Heiji, Hattori-sama is my father and everyone calls me by my first name, even the children n the scullery."

She didn't turn around. "Of course, Heiji-sama." She said and walked out, closing the door behind her.

Heiji gave his now clean room a grin. His plan was working perfectly. His heart gave a minuscule throb in his chest and he disregarded it. He would not back down just because she was a nice girl, an innocent. In fact, that little fact meant absolutely nothing to him at all.

Yet he couldn't help but hear the voice that told him to give up, give up, _give up,_ while he still could.

**___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________**

**And it will go down hill from here! Heiji just can't do right by himself, can he?**


	9. Fight

"I heard what you're doing."

Heiji turned to face Shinichi. "What?"

"From Kaito-kun. He told me. About you and the maid. Kazuha-chan." Shinichi said.

"What about it?" Heiji asked.

"It's not right; to play with someone's feeling like that. You should stop, while you still can. She's one of Ran's friends now, you know." Shinichi said bluntly.

"Hmm, no I didn't; do now. And I'm the prince, I can do what I want, so I will. There's nothing wrong with that." Heiji said and Shinichi glared at him.

"Yes, there is! Just because you can do some thing doesn't mean you should! You're going to hurt some poor girl and for what? Your pride? Please, Hattori, don't do this, it's so wrong! Just listen to me, for once! Be a decent person and call off this little challenge before you get hurt." Shinichi ranted and Heiji watched, his eyes amused, while his brain informed him he should listen to his friend.

"I'm an adult now, Kudo, I can make my own choices. And why should I care that I'm going to hurt the feelings of some lowly little peasant girl? She should feel honored that I'm paying so much attention to her anyways!" Heiji exclaimed as he internally beat himself over the head. Why must he say such stupid things?

Shinichi's gaze turned hostile. "My _wife _used to be a 'lowly little peasant girl', Hattori. Are you telling me you would've done this kind of thing to her as well?"

Heiji went on the defensive immediately. "Neechan? No, never, not her, she's too sweet and innocent and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I hurt her!"

"How is it different, Hattori? From what I've been told, this Kazuha-chan is just some sweet little child who lost her parents and came here for sanctuary. She's every bit as innocent as Ran was and you are going to hurt her and when you do I won't forgive you for it, Heiji! I won't! I swear, Hattori, call this off!" Shinichi demanded.

"It's not the same!"

"It is! You're hurting people senselessly! It's the same!"

"No, it's not like that! She's not like Neechan; she's just some girl-." Heiji started only to be cut off.

"You just don't understand, not at all. Forget it, Hattori, until you call of this ridiculous game of yours, you and I are not on speaking terms. Goodbye." Shinichi said, shaking his head and turning to walk away.

"Come on, Kudo, don't be that way. I'm just having a little fun, it's not as bad as you make it seem!" Heiji called after him.

"Oh, so it's okay to randomly go about stealing the innocence of young, sheltered, girls who are no more knowledgeable about the world than children? Ai-chan in the scullery knows more about sex and relationships than that girl and you know it. Stay away from me, Hattori, and stay away from my wife until you learn some compassion for other people."

Shinichi walked away and Heiji was left staring after him. "It's not like that. I wouldn't ever hurt anyone like Neechan, that wouldn't be right. It's different, it's different."

His heart, and Kudo, said otherwise.


	10. Prayer

Kazuha knelt in the giant chapel in the northern half of the castle. She made the sign of the cross over her breast before bowing her head and beginning to pray.

"_Please, Lord, give me strength to resist temptation. I have been tempted to do bad things lately, but I have held. I doubt I can much longer. Lend me your strength, please, I am weary. Tell me what to do, and I shall do it without complaint. Give me a sign and I shall obey it as a decree from heaven."_

Heiji walked into the chapel and saw her there, on the ground. He grinned and sauntered over, dropping down next to her. She ignored him.

"_Please take care of Aoko-chan and let her baby be born this time. She is a good person, she deserves to be happy, her and Kaito-kun both. Please, do not hurt them again. And please give Ran-chan the strength she needs to do what is right for herself and not for her kingdom. If she would be happier with a baby, let her know, but if she is not ready, please, lend her your strength._

"_Look after Ayumi-chan, she is still fragile after her sickness and she is trying too hard. Please keep her well, she has been through so much already, she doesn't deserve to be in pain as constantly as she is. Look after Genta-kun and Mitsuiko-kun, they try to be strong but they are still hurting from the deaths of their parents. Reassure them, Lord, let them know that they will be okay. And please take care of Ai-chan and help her gain her optimism back. She has seen too much for such a young child. Please help her be a kid again._

"_And lastly, please watch out for Heiji-san, he seems lost, so you should help him find his way. Even after hearing all the rumors, I think he has a good heart deep down._

"_One last thing. Please tell mother and father I am thinking abut them and I hope they can see me and are proud of me. I have tried hard to make myself into someone they'd be proud to call their daughter. Help me find someone to love as well, if you could. It seems everyone around here has someone. Ran-chan has Shinichi-kun and Aoko-chan has Kaito-kun, but I don't really have anyone. I am lonely. Please look after us all, Lord. Amen."_

Kazuha opened her eyes and jumped when she saw Heiji next to her. "W-when did you get here, Heiji-sama?"

Heiji grinned. "Oh, so I'm Heiji-san when you're talking to God, but Heiji-sama to my face? That seems a bit messed up, don't you think?"

Kazuha glared at him. "Prince or not, what do you think you're doing, eavesdropping on people's prayers? It's rude!"

"Well, what are you doing over in this chapel? The servant's chapel is around back." Heiji countered, not having a good reason for listening in.

Kazuha looked caught off guard. "Servant's chapel. I didn't know there was one. I asked Ran-chan where a chapel I could use was and she told me here."

Heiji groaned loudly. "You asked Neechan? She's nearly as bad as you, she doesn't know anything! Not only is she a guest, but she hasn't been out of that village of hers for even a year yet! You'd have better luck asking _Ayumi-chan _where things were!"

She scowled. "Well how was I supposed to know that?" Her expression softened slightly then. "Ayumi-chan, what a sweet child. I hope she's feeling better, I should run down and check on her...."

Kazuha stood up then, seeming to forget the prince's presence beside her as she crossed herself and moved towards the exit.

"Oi, what do you think you're doing!?" Heiji called after her, annoyed at being left so quickly.

"....maybe Ai-chan will draw me a map or Sonoko-chan if she's not busy-. What? What's wrong, Heiji-sama?" Kazuha stopped her musing, turning to look back at the fuming teen.

"You're not supposed to stand up before me, ahou!" Heiji said and Kazuha took a moment to register the fact that she'd just been called a rather uncomplimentary name.

"Ahou, you're the ahou! I don't know these things unless you tell me!"

Heiji huffed. "Well, you know now. And you shouldn't call the prince things like that, its treason."

"I'll do what I want, it's my life. Frankly, if Kaito-kun hadn't picked me up, I'd be dead by now anyways. So I'm living on borrowed time as it is. Best live the way I choose, or so I think." She said idly before walking towards the doors again. Heiji caught up with her and fell in place at her side, not making a point of walking in front of her like he should.

"You shouldn't be so careless with your life, if Kaito-kun went through al that trouble to save you, you should at least repay him by making use of yourself." Heiji said and Kazuha looked at him.

"I suppose that's one way of thinking of it. But I refuse to bend. It is not my way. Sayonara, Heiji-sama." She said, slipping out the door and down the hallway without giving him time to react before she was down the servant's stairwell.

"Oi, call me Heiji-san, at least, you stubborn girl!"


	11. Patience

"Sonoko-kun, it isn't working, she doesn't seem to like me at all." Heiji complained as he sat on one of the counters in the kitchen, watching as the chef fried up pieces of fish for the kitchen staff's lunches. The children had stopped working and were sitting in the doorway to the scullery, watching their master work and talking in low voices, occasionally glancing Heiji's way before turning back to their conversation.

"That's just because she is a good actor, for short amounts of time. She has a great amount of affection for you, but does not want to put her heart on the line, not that I can blame her. Just keep up with it and she will break, I am certain. She and Ran-chan have been talking, Aoko-chan too, sometimes, and the things they speak of would surprise you greatly, Heiji-kun. Be patient." Sonoko said, mumbling as she continued on with her work. "Ayumi-chan, my pet, come here and help Sonoko-sensei. Extra hands are needed, my dear."

Ayumi stood up and moved across the floor, her eyes sparkling like the rain and the sound of her voice like a bell. "Of course, Sonoko-sensei."

Sonoko picked the girl up and put her on her hip, telling her to drop a fish strip into the grease every couple of minutes. Ayumi worked silently, but she seemed delighted to be helping, smiling her little smile and handling the fish as if it were meant for the king himself.

Heiji's eyes glittered as he heard that they spoke of him. "What do they say, Sonoko-kun, tell me."

"Heiji-kun, you already are forcing me to do so much, will you not let me keep what confidences I can? To betray someone's trust is a horrible thing, you would force that on me, would you? I've tried my hardest to remain kind and civil to you but it is difficult when you try to make me do things that go against my very core." Sonoko said wearily, knowing that acting in such a beaten way would hurt the prince more than anger on her part. He was not such a bad person; he just was used to getting what he wanted. He didn't have a habit of treating his servants as lesser than him and he did not like for them to act as though they were.

It worked, Heiji's face fell and he looked mildly ashamed. "Sonoko-kun, don't be that way-."

"Don't force me to do things like this and I won't have to." Sonoko cut him off and dipped the last piece of fish into the batter before handing it off to Ayumi, who waited to drop it into the grease.

"Fine, keep t to yourself. But she does like me?" Heiji said with a sigh.

"Very much so. Okay, Ayumi-chan, ime to wash our hands." She said and the moved to the basin, running their fingers under the water that gushed forth. Ayumi giggled at the sensation, wiggling her fingers under the cold spray long after Sonoko removed hers. She let the water run over them until the were numb and freezing. She wiped the water on the skirt of her dress before rejoining her friends. Heiji watched them wistfully, they had yet to speak to him, despite the fact he was on better terms with their master now.

Sonoko caught the look. "Does it hurt, them ignoring you?"

Heiji opted for the truth. "Yes, especially Ayumi-chan and Ai-chan. I think of them as younger sisters to care for and watch over, but I can't do that if they snub any attempts to speak with them."

Ayumi coughed loudly, her whole frame shaking with the force of it and Ai reached towards her even as Genta thumped her on the back, hoping to clear her throat. Sonoko sent her a worried glance but set about removing the fish from the grease and setting it on plates that she handed out t her diminutive crew. She handed Ayumi an earthenware cup filling with tea and placed her hand against the girl's forehead.

"No fever, Ayumi-chan. It' probably just a cold left over from when you were sick; nothing to worry about, you'll be fine." Sonoko said, exchanging a worried look first with Ai and then with Heiji while the others weren't looking.

"Of course you will." Heiji said and Ayumi turned and looked at him, her blue eyes still looking betrayed and hurt in their innocence. By now, the children had discovered it was Kazuha the adults were arguing about and that had Ayumi more up in arms than normal. Kazuha had been very kind to her and had cared for her like no one since her mother had, she couldn't live with herself if she was to be friendly with someone who was intentionally hurting her, even if it was Heiji.

Sonoko sighed, feeling the tension in the room increase. "Go away, Heiji, its our break time, we don't need you here killing the mood."


	12. Proximity

"Do you hate me?"

Kazuha turned, looking in surprise at Heiji, who was sitting on his bed with an unpleasant look about his face, like a pouting child.

Kazuha turned back to the desk she'd been wiping down. "Of course not, don't be stupid."

"Do you like me?" he asked, his tone brighter.

"In my own way, I suppose. You really aren't such a bad person."

"How _much _do you like me?" Heiji asked and Kazuha paused.

"I'm not sure how to answer that." She said after a moment before beginning to work again.

"Do you _like me _like me?" Heiji asked and she turned around, dust rag him her right hand as she placed both of her hands on her hips.

"Just what are you trying to ask? Or are you trying to say something?" Kazuha demanded, tired of the game already, as her heart beat wildly in her chest and she yelled at it internally. _Shut up, shut up, __**shut up!**_

Heiji stood and walked closer to her until she was trapped against the desk. "Do you like me, more than you should?"

Kazuha gulped, intimidated by his words and aroused by his proximity. "Yes, more than I should, but I shouldn't like you at all."

"I shouldn't like you either, but I do. I like you quite a bit." He said and she could _feel _the words rumble out of his chest. "What would you do if I kissed you?"

Kazuha gulped loudly and her eyes flickered up to his, getting caught in the greenness of them. "I don't know."

Heiji leaned closer, if that were possible. "Let's find out."

And they did.


	13. Crescendo

_The door banged open and Heiji didn't even twitch as light flooded into his room._

_"Get up." a voice demanded and he recognized it as being Kaito's voice._

_Heiji didn't move._

_"I said, get up, damn you!" Kaito said, grabbing the collar of the prince's shirt and hauling him up. Heiji did nothing, his head lolling back like an infant's, his arms limp at his side._

_"Ran-chan's back, she's out there by herself." Kaito said and Heiji's eyes opened, flickering to Kaito as the words registered._

_"She hates me." Heiji said and Kaito resisted the erg to cringe at the dead sounding voice that came out of his friend's mouth._

_"She hates you because she loves you. You can win her back, Hattori, you have to. She won't survive on her own. Are you just going to lay here and die? You're killing them too! Do you know how worried everyone is? Sure, they're all mad at you, you messed up, big time, but they don't want you to die, they just want you to fix your mistakes, make amends! Damn it, even Sonoko-kun is worried about you now! Get up, Hattori! Live, damn you!" Kaito said, his voice slightly desperate._

_Heiji didn't respond._

_"I don't even know why I'm here." Kaito said, letting the prince fall back against his mattress. "Right now, my son is up there along with my beautiful wife after trying for so long and instead of being there with them I'm down here with you. Heiji, please, get up. Get dressed, get something to eat, do anything, but don't lay here and die. She still needs you, whether you believe me or not."_

_Heiji blinked slowly, turning to look at Kaito. "Your son was born?"_

_Kaito smiled, relieved that he got some sort of reaction out of the brain-dead teen. "Yeah. His name is Mamoru. He looks tough; I think he's going to make it. It'll kill Aoko if he doesn't. Do you want to come see him? It'd really make Aoko's day if you did. Or I could bring him down here." Kaito offered._

_Heiji's reaction time was still slow but he managed a dead-looking smile. "I'll go see him, if it's okay."_

_Kaito's grin nearly split his face in half. "Great! Get up, let's go!"_

_Heiji rose from his bed like a puppet but the important thing was that he rose. Kaito helped him change out of his pajamas and into his normal clothes before opening the door and leading him out of the room. Servants and visiting nobles stopped in the halls to look at them as they passed, gasping that the prince was out of his room. Kaito ignored them and Heiji didn't even seem to see them, his eyes on Kaito's back as they walked. They arrived at Kaito and Aoko's chambers in a few minutes and Kaito knocked and entered._

_"Aoko? Heiji-kun wants to come visit you and Mamoru." Kaito said softly._

_"Heiji-kun?! Come in, come in, we're both awake." Aoko gasped before speaking quickly._

_Heiji walked in and saw Aoko propped up in her bed, her face pale and her eyes looking bigger against her gaunt face. In her arms was a tiny baby swathed in a muslin colored blanket, his blue eyes wide and moving about with interest._

_Kaito moved to her side and she handed the child to him. He cradled the infant like it was a fragile treasure and then approached Heiji, who was still at the door, looking as if he might run from the babe like it was a poisonous reptile instead of a harmless newborn._

_"Here he is, Mamoru meet Hattori Heiji, Prince of the West, but you can just call him Heiji-jiichan. Heiji-kun, this is my son, isn't he absolutely perfect?"_

_Heiji nodded mutely, his fingers twitching slightly. Kaito saw and looked at the dark skinned teen. "Do you want to hold him?"_

_Heiji nodded and gulped loudly. "I-...yes, I do"_

_Kaito leaned forward and Heiji folded his arms into a cradle, which Kaito placed the still looking about Mamoru in. The babe looked up at Heiji curiously, studying his face, noting how he was darker than his parents, how he didn't recognize his face but his voice was slightly familiar and Mamoru wished he would speak again, so that he could try and remember why he remembered this voice. Heiji studied the tiny infant just as curiously._

_"Hello, Mamoru, I'm your Heiji-jiichan. You probably don't know this but you are a very special little runt. Your 'Kaachan and 'Touchan worried about you for a long time so you better behave for them. But I don't have to tell you that, you're a good tyke, aren't you, kiddo?" Heiji said softly and Mamoru remembered the voice, the voice he'd heard scream at his mother and then cry and the do all sorts of other things, but this voice had been there a lot. He didn't like that this man had yelled at his mother but he was nice now, he was warm and his arms were strong, he wouldn't be dropped while he was with this man, he was sure._

_"I-Kaito-kun, come get him, please." Heiji said and Kaito fluttered back over, removing his son from Heiji's grasp. Heiji's hands clenched and unclenched, missing the warm weight of the baby's body._

_"Heiji-kun, are you okay, you don't look too good." Aoko asked and Heiji's eyes flitted to her briefly._

_"No, I'm not." He said, as if he were just realizing it himself. "Kaito-kun, where is she?"_

_Kaito handed off Mamoru to his wife, who seemed glad to have him back in her arms. "I'll have to show you the trail; it's one of the seven hidden trails that lead to the mountain. Ran-chan discovered it on a stroll and helped her to find it. But from there, you'll be on your own, I'm needed here."_

_"Right. Let's go, now." Heiji said and turned to walk out the door._

_"Heiji-kun." A voice called behind him and he stopped. Aoko's voice was weak, feeble even, and weary. "Don't be impatient, don't get angry, and whatever you do, don't give up. She wants you, she loves you, she does but she's hurt and she doesn't realize how much she needs you. She won't play fair, and what she's going to say is going to hurt but you __cannot lie down and take it. You must fight back without loosing your temper or raising your voice. Do you understand what I am saying, Heiji-kun? Don't let her win, if she wins then you both lose. Remember that."_

_Heiji paused in the doorway and he stood there for a moment, Kaito a foot or so behind him, waiting to follow the prince out. "Right. I got it, Aoko-kun. I got it."_


	14. Talking

"So, I heard you and Heiji-kun were quiet a bit more friendly to each other recently." Ran said, watching as Kazuha fixed the hem on her dress. She only owned two dresses, one for work and one for whatever else it was needed for. She wore the work one around the castle and the hem had gotten caught on a rose thorn outside, causing the crude stitches to come undone.

"Not particularly." Kazuha said with a slight blush as she knotted the end of her thread. Ran would've had a quick come back ready, if she had not been watching Kazuha sew up the brown dress with a frown on her face.

"Kazuha-chan, please let me get you another dress, this one is so threadbare and it's not like I can't afford it, I _am_ married to a prince." Ran said with a pleading look and Kazuha shook her head firmly.

"I'd feel guilty, Ran-chan, and this dress is fine, its still in pretty good condition. I have two dresses and that pair of slacks and shirt Kaito-kun gave to me that first night. That's more clothes than most servants ever get; I'm fine."

"Not here! At the Eastern Castle and the Western Castle, servants have lots of clothes! Please, just one dress, Kazuha-chan, nothing fancy, I'll even let you work for it, if it'll make you feel better about it! Please!" Ran begged, giving Kazuha one of her patented Puppy Dog Eyes.

Kazuha huffed. "Oh, fine. But don't go easy on me!"

Ran absolutely beamed. "Wouldn't dream of it. We'll get you a lovely dress and Heiji-kun's eyes will fall right out of his head when he sees you!"

Kazuha paused slightly in her movements but started back just as easily. "Don't be silly, Ran-chan, Heiji-san doesn't see me that way at all; I'm just his maid."

"Don't be ridiculous, Kazuha-chan. He really does like you." Ran said and regretted the words. She knew of Heiji's trickery through Aoko, whom she'd become good friends with. She really should've been encouraging Kazuha to request another assignment, but the idea of the tan prince and her newest friend together made such a pretty picture that she couldn't let it go. So, instead, she resolved to speak with Heiji about giving it an actually shot with the chamber maid and, meanwhile, convince Kazuha of her own feelings.

"I'm just his maid. I know my place, Ran-chan, I'm not meant for anything else." Kazuha said, finally breaking the thread and tying it off before marveling at her handiwork in satisfaction. "Not too bad, if I do say so myself."

"I thought the same thing, when Shinichi first became friends with me. But look at me now! I'm a princess in my own right, I've got my dream husband at my side, life couldn't be better, really. If it happened to me, it could happen to you, I'm sure!" Ran exclaimed positively.

"I'm sorry, Ran-chan, I'm just not that optimistic." Kazuha said, pulling her dress back over her head, having been in her undergarments the entire time.

The two girls stood up then, exiting the room they'd been inhabiting. They walked outside, stopping to admire the blooming rosebushes, despite what damage the things had done to Kazuha's wardrobe. Kaito's father had been the one to originally suggest them to the queen and she had delighted, though not outwardly, in the idea and ordered them to be planted around the side of the castle, facing the stables so that the now late Toichi could look out and see them blooming as he worked. As they walked around to the area where the bushes changed from red to white, they bumped into Aoko, who stood admiring the flowers, one white bloom stuck haphazardly in her hair.

"Aoko-chan!" They exclaimed in excitement, happy to catch the girl when she wasn't working. Being the laundry maid kept her constantly busy, not a good job for someone in her condition, pregnant and prone to lightheadedness, notwithstanding her history of miscarriages and stillborns. But she still insisted upon working, despite the queen's continuing offers to take time off until the baby was born.

"Ah, Kazuha-chan, Ran-chan! How nice to see you two." Aoko said, jumping back from the flowers in shock. Ran's hand came out quickly, immediately grabbing her friend's arm in case the shock of having them appear proved too much for her. Aoko stumbled, but caught herself with the help of the hand. "Thank you, Ran-chan."

"What are you doing way over here?" Kazuha asked, wondering if the maid actually had agreed to take the rest of her pregnancy off, however unlikely.

"Looking for you, actually, Kazuha-chan. Someone said you were over this way. Heiji-kun is calling for you up in his room; says you missed a spot." Aoko grinned.

Kazuha scowled but began stalking off that way without complaint. "Goodbye, Ran-chan, Aoko-chan, I'll see you at dinner!"

"Goodbye!" the two look-alikes chorused.

"She didn't miss anything, didn't she?" Ran asked and Aoko grinned wider.

"Knowing Heiji-kun? Nope, nothing at all, he's the one missing; missing her."

Together, the two giggled like village girls.


	15. Fallen

**Warning: Nothing graphic, the rating is still T, but if you don't like that kind of stuff, you could do with skipping this chapter. Kirby, muse-chan, I hope you're happy now! *frown***

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

"Well, goodbye then, Heiji-kun." Kazuha said, pausing at the door with shy smile on her face and Heiji looked at her, seemingly pleased.

"You called me Heiji_-kun­_." He said incredulously and she blushed.

"Well, I just thought since we were being nicer to each other now and I knew you better tha-mmphg!" she was cut off as he materialized in front of her, his lips on hers in a second and she froze before leaning into it, against her better judgment.

They broke apart for air but he returned in seconds and she found that she was glad he did, that she didn't want this to stop, to stop being with him ever. She wanted to be closer to him, much closer, she wanted to make him a part of her and the thought terrified her so much that she began to lean away from his embrace. He followed her easily and she gave up without trying again.

Her turned her around and leaned her back until she felt the soft mattress underneath her as he leaned over her, pressing his body against hers as if he too could stand the thought of not getting closer.

His hands slipped under her dress and she forgot all thought, forgot what it was like to breathe, forget her name and her past, forgot who he was and who she was, and why this was wrong, _wrong, __**wrong. **_She forgot everything except the feeling of his hands on her skin, his lips on hers, and the solid press of his body, leaving her no way to escape.

And it was this feeling that she hoped she'd never forget as he pressed into her and she gave herself away, completely, realizing for the first time that she had been falling, falling in love, and there he was, having caught her right at the bottom.


	16. Aftermath

As he lay there in the aftermath, he felt the slow creep of shame wash over him. In all honesty, he hadn't expected to be able to go through with it and he regretted that his own conscious hadn't stopped him. She lay there, unaware, curled against his side like a child, having tired herself out rather quickly. Her head rested in the crook of his shoulder and she moved closer and closer as the night wore on, seeking the warmth beside her. After several hours of just staring at her and realizing the consequences of what he'd done, he removed one of his arms from behind his head and draped it around her shoulders. With his own skin there for comparison, he realized how very pale she was and it shocked him that he'd never noticed before.

He shifted slightly and she made a noise in the back of her throat before her green eyes opened slightly to look at him.

She yawned. "Heiji...?"

"Shh, go back to sleep." He said and she closed her eyes without further prompting, falling back into her dreams in an instant.

He felt a swirl of affection as he looked at her and wondered at its origins. He glanced at her again. Last night had been an act of love for her. And what had it been for him? All he'd done was prove he could win anyone over that he wanted; that he truly was irresistible. He felt ashamed. He felt dirty. He felt like he was the one who'd been used, rather than her. He'd never had this problem before, he'd never felt bad for what he did. But all the others knew what they were getting into. And he hadn't had to pretend he loved them to get them in his bed.

That felt like a lie.

He hadn't really pretended all that much, now that he'd thought about it. One or two lies, but that was it. He had _wanted_ to see her smile, had _wanted_ to her to call him a friend, had _wanted_ to kiss her, to see her happy. He still wanted those things for her. He wanted to protect her. She was naïve, a child living in an adult world and playing her part, but she was so fragile. He didn't want anyone to hurt her, ever. He wanted to love her like she deserved be loved.

With a rush, he realized what he'd just thought. He tried to refute it; he wasn't in love, not with _her!_

But he was. And he knew it.

And he vowed that absolutely _no one_ would find out.


	17. Watching

Kazuha walked over to Aoko, holding the sheets from Heiji's bed in a wad. She approached the woman slowly, making sure her steps were loud and noticeable; she had a bad habit of sneaking up on the other girl and scaring her.

"Aoko-chan?" Kazuha called out and Aoko turned around, smiling and not the least bit startled to see her friend there.

"Kazuha-chan! Those are Heiji's, right? Let's see the damage." Aoko said, spotting the characteristic light green sheets that only the prince used. Kazuha handed over the bundle and Aoko unfolded it, holding it out in front her. A large stain was right in the middle of the cloth and Aoko turned to Kazuha with shocked eyes. "You didn't....."

Kazuha smiled sheepishly, pulling the end of her ponytail nervously. "Please don't think badly of me, Aoko-chan...."

Aoko dropped the sheets into the water and put a hand to her head. Her other hand braced itself against Kazuha's thigh as she swayed slightly.

"Oh my gosh, Aoko-chan, are you okay?" Kazuha asked and Aoko gave a faint shake of her head before sliding the rest of the way down to the ground.

"Could you please go get Kaito for me, Kazuha-chan?" Aoko asked, overly calm, and Kazuha noted her voice shook ever so slightly.

"O-of course! I'll be right back!" Kazuha said, running off towards the stables, which weren't far away from them.

Aoko watched her friend run to the building and then watched as Kaito ran back with her, outdistancing the ponytailed girl easily. He dropped down beside her while he was still moving, causing his knees to skid in the dirt. Slipping a hand under the shoulder that was on the ground, he tilted her until she was upright and facing him.

"Aoko? Are you okay? Aoko?" Kaito asked, frantically as she didn't respond, tears building in her eyes. Suddenly, she launched herself at him, burying her face in the crook of his neck.

"He did it, he really did it. God, why? She loves him, she really loves him and he's going to _break _her-!" Aoko sobbed and Kaito saw the stained sheets floating in the water, telling him everything he needed to know.

Kazuha stood by, tugging at her ponytail and looking on nervously, wondering what she should do.

"Kazuha-chan?" Kaito asked as he shifted his wife to where he could pick her up more easily.

Kazuha stood to attention, almost like a soldier. "Yes, Kaito-kun? Can I do anything to help? I didn't mean to startle her...."

Kaito stood, wife in his arms. "Actually, Kazuha-chan, if you would just be so kind as to inform Shizuka-sama that Aoko and I will be unable to complete our duties today and see if she would be so kind as to assign them to someone else, that would be plenty helpful. Do you mind?"

Kazuha shook her head furiously. "No, not at all! It was my fault anyways! I hope you feel better soon, Aoko-chan! Ja!"

The girl ran off towards the throne room where the queen liked to spend most of her day. Her husband found the room stuffy and without purpose and often was seen about the castle, handling affairs with visiting nobles and doing other things that needed to be done to uphold his kingdom. The queen, however, found the room to be necessary, a display of power and a comfort to those who stayed in the castle, as they could almost always count on her to be in there to deal with affairs of importance. Kaito watched her go before turning to his wife.

"Let's get you up to the room." He said and she tightened her grip around his neck.

"How could he? How could he? I trusted him, I trusted him with my life!" Aoko sobbed and Kaito hummed soothingly.

"Don't worry, love, this is double-edged sword he's holding. Every time he cuts her, he'll only to do himself more harm."

"I don't want either of them to get hurt, I love them both." She cried and Kaito walked towards the servants' entrance

"I know, but he needs to learn his lesson and I'm watching. I won't let it go too far. Or should I say, I won't let it go further than it _should._"


	18. Estinto

Shizuka walked through the corridors quickly, not pausing to look at the people in the hallway who stared at her. It wasn't often you saw the queen out of her throne room and they wondered what the occasion was. Shizuka walked into the servants' quarters of the castle and knocked briskly on a wooden door.

"Who is there?" a faint voice called from within.

"It is me, Aoko-chan." Shizuka said in response and the door opened nearly immediately. Kaito looked at her curiously, stepping aside to allow her entrance into the room.

Akako sat on the end of the bed, holding Mamoru while Aoko watched her friend play with the baby, an amused, yet tired, look on her face. Akako was pulling random things out of thin air and the baby was watching with huge eyes and waving its hands about, trying to grab the objects that would float in front of it.

"Shizuka-sama." Akako acknowledged without looking up.

"Akako-chan." Shizuka nodded in return before moving to the opposite side of the bed to peer at Aoko. "Aoko-chan, my dear, are you okay? You're awfully pale. There was not any trouble with the birth, was there?"

Aoko smiled at her queen. "The midwife says I will be fine. She said, and I quote, "You, Aoko-kun, are the fragile sort. I'm surprised you were able to go through with this at all, personally. Give your body a few days to recover before you try anything." It seems to me as long as I lay here like a lump for a few days I'll be back to normal in no time."

Shizuka smiled warmly. "Make sure to do that then, no reason to push yourself. What did you name him?"

Kaito had come back over to the others by then and was watching them all with an amused expression, though the queen noted that he seemed a bit strung out. "We named him Mamoru. Akako-chan has already started calling him Ru-chan, though."

"Ru-chan, how cute. What is that look on your face, Kaito-kun. You would think you'd be a bit happier after finally getting what you've wanted or so long. Don't tell me it's become a hollow victory." Shizuka inquired with a frown.

"Not at all! As for this," Kaito gestured around him, "I couldn't be happier. I'm ecstatic! But.... Your son came up to visit us earlier."

Shizuka gasped. "Heiji? He is out of bed? Where is he, Kaito-kun?"

"He's on his way to try and win Kazuha-chan back, but your son has never had a way with words, Your Majesty. I am worried for them." Kaito said and Akako continued to play with the babe, but listened closely. Kaito may have been the 'Stable Hand Who Knows Everything', but she was the sorceress; she truly did know everything and worked hard at it.

Akako sighed. "I cannot tell you everything, if I do then you would not do the things you must do to make sure that things will continue in the right direction, but I can tell you that your son is on his toes this night. You know as well as anyone, Shizuka-sama, what happens when your boy puts his mind to it."

The room let out a small sigh of relief.

"If he is taking this seriously, then we don't have to worry too much." Shizuka said before turning her attention back to the young woman under the sheets. "Aoko-chan, I absolutely demand you take a year off to take care of Ru-chan, do you understand? You really shouldn't have to work at all, seeing as Kaito's not really a stable hand, but I know how you are. But I insist. One year, at the very least."

Akako smiled, handing the babe back to its mother. "That reminds me, the Northern Territories seem to be up to something devious, Your Majesty. I think Kaito-kun would be the best person to squash it, but I wouldn't send him from home. Bad luck bodes if he strays to far form his wife or child anytime in the next few months. I suggest Hakuba or Wataru to take his place; they are capable enough for the job."

Shizuka sighed. "I suppose I have no choice, but Kaito-kun has always been my favorite dasanteki. Very well. Also, Akako-chan, please keep your eyes on my son for the time being. Even if he is using his head, he is prone to fits is denseness. I am confident in his abilities, though."

Shizuka stood and exited then, nodding at Kaito and Aoko as she left. Akako stood then as well, leaning over to hug her friend gingerly and nodded twice at Kaito, warning him to keep an eye on his wife. Then she left, counting the beads on her bracelet, a gift from the fey after they'd discovered her powers, out of worry and irritation.

They'd all forgotten to ask about Kazuha, who was also taking this seriously and who was distancing herself mentally, by leaps and bonds, from the Western prince. It wouldn't matter what Heiji did or said if she refused to look or listen. But she was bond by her powers; she could not tell things if they did not ask. She had been asked to report on Heiji, had been asked to report on all of the territories and all the other kingdoms. But she had not been asked to report on Kazuha or Ran, and that was where the difference lay.

As she walked down the hall, she wondered to herself whether her powers were a gift or a curse.


	19. Foreboding

Months passed and it was fall again, the last leaves of summer withering and dying before drifting to the ground in one of nature's most beautiful performances. The scullery children were out of the kitchen, running across the castle's lawns under the watchful eye of Sonoko and Kazuha.

As she watched the children play, climbing trees and jumping in leaf piles and generally being children, Kazuha let her mind wonder to the prince. Her prince, her mind claimed, but she squashed the voice with minimal effort. The past couple of months had been heaven on earth for her. She might have thought him to be a bad person before, but now she only saw him as the best thing in her life. The sun and the rain; the moon and the stars; she let him mean more than anything else. She wondered what he was doing now, if he was missing her like she was missing him. She'd like to think he was.

Especially after what she had learned the day before.

"_Akako-chan, I've been feeling very strange lately, a kind of foreboding feeling, and I've been becoming sick in the mornings. Is there any way you could tell me if I'm about to have a fit of bad luck or something of the like?" Kazuha asked after calling the sorceress up to her room._

"_I can look, but I might not be able to tell you, Kazuha-chan. There are rules to follow for people like me. Fey rules. I cannot break them, I literally am unable to." Akako replied, holding up arm to show the other girl the fey-stone bracelet that hung on her wrist._

"_I understand. Please, just tell me if you can." Kazuha said, smiling at the older girl and Akako thought of smiling back but decided better of it. _

_Akako stood motionless for several minutes before swaying slightly and opening her eyes. She laughed, having seen something amusing. "Did your mother die when you were young, Kazuha-chan?"_

"_Yes, Akako-chan, why do you ask?" Kazuha inquired, puzzled._

"_Because it would explain why you passed off this sensation as a sickening feeling instead of recognizing it immediately. You, my dear, are pregnant, with a girl, if I'm not mistaken. It is too early to tell, really." Akako said, still shaking slightly with mirth._

"_What? Are-are you sure, Akako-chan?" Kazuha asked, feeling her stomach flip inside out at the news._

"_Positive. This must be quite a shock. Run off to bed, my friend, I'll inform Heiji-kun that you won't be coming up today. You don't want me to tell him the news, do you?" Akako asked, hoping she would say yes just to get the chance to see the look on the young man's face when he heard._

"_No! Don't...." Kazuha said, trailing off and Akako nodded, feeling sorry for the girl. _

_Without another word, Akako left the room and Kazuha sat down on her bed, her arm going around her stomach reflexively. With her arm resting there, she noticed it was a little bigger than it had been; the thought was not comforting. _

"Kazuha-neechan!" a voice cried out and Kazuha looked up to see Mitsuiko running towards her.

"Mitsuiko-kun! What's wrong?" Kazuha asked spotting the frantic look on the boy's face. Looking around, Kazuha noticed that Sonoko had left while she'd been musing over what had happened.

"Ayumi-chan says she doesn't feel very good." Mitsuiko said and Kazuha got up and began walking quickly in the direction the boy had come from.

Kazuha spotted Ayumi immediately, sitting on the ground looking paler than normal as Ai hovered over her. The girl looked up at her and her eyes grew a little brighter. Her mouth opened to call out to the older girl but instead she began to cough viciously. She covered her mouth with her hand and when she finally stopped coughing, she looked down and her eyes grew wide. From her spot next to her friend, Ai sucked in her breath, her hands flying up over her mouth in shock.

"No!" Ai gasped, near silently.

Ayumi pulled her hand back from her mouth and turned it to where Kazuha could see it.

In the middle of her palm was a single, bright red spot of blood.


	20. Comsumption

"Kazuha-san, please, don't go in, it's not safe! It's the consumption!" Ayumi's nursemaid pleaded and Kazuha pushed by her.

"Then I am free to catch it if I want. Leave us be; I'll take care of her." Kazuha said.

The woman, a girl really, younger than Kazuha herself by the looks of her, grabbed onto her arm, digging her heels into the ground to try and stop her from proceeding. "Kazuha-san, please! I have orders not to let anyone in!"

"You aren't letting me in; I'm forcing my way in. I'll be the one to blame." Kazuha yanked herself free, and disregarding the young nursemaid's continuing protests, went inside.

In the room, Ayumi lay propped up in her bed, pale and tiny against her pillows.

"Kazuha-neechan!" Ayumi exclaimed her face lighting up.

Kazuha smiled and went over to the bed, sitting next to the child and pulling her legs up onto the mattress with her. "Ayumi-chan. How do you feel, are you okay?"

Ayumi smiled. "I'll be fine. How is Ai-chan? She was upset..." Ayumi broke off in a fit of coughing, flecks of blood appearing on her hand when she was done. Without anything else to do, Ayumi wiped her hand on her sheets and Kazuha noticed just how much blood was already on there.

"She's fine, Ayumi-chan, don't worry. You just need to concentrate on getting better." Kazuha said and Ayumi nodded.

"Can we rock?" Ayumi asked, gesturing faintly to an old rocking chair in a corner of the room.

"Of course." Kazuha said, picking up the child and going over to the rocker. Ayumi sagged against her, limp and lifeless as a doll as Kazuha rocked back and forth slowly.

Suddenly, Ayumi jumped and Kazuha looked down in shock as Ayumi turned to her with wide, terrified eyes.

"Kazuha-neechan, your stomach just _hit _me and it's _bigger...._" Ayumi said trailing off. "You aren't....?"

Kazuha closed her eyes. "I am." She said softly.

"Is it Heiji-niichan's...?"

"It is."

Ayumi began sobbing then, quiet, heart-rending sobs.

"Ayumi-chan what's wrong?" Kazuha asked fretfully.

"I don't want you to get hurt. I love you, Kazuha-neechan. I think of you like my mother. I don't want you to get hurt." Ayumi sobbed, nearly unintelligible through her tears.

"Oh, Ayumi-chan, I think of you like a daughter too, this doesn't change anything. The baby isn't going to hurt me; the midwives here are good at what they do." Kazuha reassured, unaware that Ayumi wasn't referring to the baby at all. But the girl was under orders preventing her from saying anything.

Ayumi just sobbed harder. "You don't understand. You don't understand."


	21. Dress

"Kazuha-chan, please eat." Ran begged, placing a plate in front of her friend. They were in the currently empty servant's dining hall and Kazuha, for the fifth time in a row, simply moved the food around on her plate before pushing it away. "Kazuha-chan! Please, don't do this to yourself, you need to eat! It's not healthy."

"Ne, Ran-chan, she's not going to make it, is she? Ayumi-chan, I mean." Kazuha said quietly after a moment and Ran's eyebrows furrowed.

"Don't you dare give up on her! Don't even think about it! If you give up then she will too and she cannot afford to give up now. Now, stop doing this and eat already, starving yourself doesn't do anyone any good! She needs you to be strong for her right now."

"Shut up!" Kazuha suddenly yelled, standing as her hands flew up to cover her ears. "Be strong, Kazuha, be strong, that's all any of you are telling me, but how can I be strong for her when I can't even be strong for myself? How can I be brave when I'm falling apart? I can't do this! I can't save them both!" Kazuha wrapped her arms around her midsection.

Ran looked on sympathetically before wrapping her arms around the other girl in a tight hug. After a moment of sobbing, Kazuha removed her arms from her stomach and hugged Ran back tightly, clinging on like she was her last lifeline. Ran held her friend for a moment before noticing something felt off.

"Kazuha-chan, not to be rude, but have you put on weight or something, your stomach seems bigger..." Ran asked and Kazuha shook her head no without looking up. Ran regarded the girl for a moment before gasping in shock. "You're.....You are!" Ran said, understanding perfectly. Without further ado, she untangled herself from the young maid's embrace and forced her to sit on the bench, pulling over the plate she'd disregarded earlier. "Eat. _**Now**__._"

Kazuha did so without complaint, finishing the dish before pushing the plate away again.

"A-ah, Ran-chan?" Kazuha said after a moment, her voice nearly clear of tears.

"Yes?" Ran answered.

"About that dress you were bugging me about...."

Ran smiled. "Ah, I just have a couple of chores for you to do, though I've already told you that you don't have to do anything for it. Have you decided what color you want yet?"

Kazuha nodded. "Black. I want black."

**___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________**

**In case you couldn't tell, s2lou-chan, I've made up my mind. Her name is on The List; the bad one. It's in permanent marker, no going back.**

**Okay! And now time for something a little less serious. Baby names. I need votes on the name. **

**1) Akari (I am partial to this. Her nickname could be Kari-chan!)**

**2) Matsu (It sounds cute, but I'd want Takeshi around too, which is not probably unless I work him in with the fey somehow.)  
**

**3) Hana (A shout out to Ran, because Ran means orchid and Hana means flower. Also a bit of a shout out to a little girl I killed off in Snapshots.)**

**4) Mystery Name (It should be on here as a choice, but I can't tell you it because it is a Mystery. Come on, Conan fans, figure out the name, I dare you.)**

**Those are the choices, please vote on the one you like best, or if you think of a really good name, feel free to suggest it.  
**


	22. Conversation

"You." Ai said to Heiji as he was walking through the kitchen. "Come in here. Right now."

Heiji jumped at the voice that had come from the scullery before smiling widely. "Are you talking to me now, Ai-chan?"

Ai glared at him and he felt his blood go cold. "No, I'm not. Now hurry up before I change my mind."

Heiji gulped and stepped into the small room. As soon as he was through the door, Ai shut it behind him. It wasn't a very sturdy door, its main use was to keep the children out of sight when visiting nobles came into the kitchen for in between meal snacks, but it would keep anyone from seeing her talking to the prince.

"You are possibly one of the worst people I have ever met, simply because you do not even realize how horrible you are, it just comes naturally." Ai hissed at him a Heiji merely gaped at her, taken aback.

"What? Why do you say that?" Heiji said after a moment.

"Listen to me carefully, because I'm not going to repeat myself. I shouldn't be telling you this in the first place, but I want you to feel the full weight of how truly awful you are. Kazuha-san is pregnant. And you know very well who the father is, don't you? Do you realize what this will do to her, Heiji-san? Do you?" Ai glowered at him.

"No! She isn't!" Heiji insisted, not even believing the words as they came out of his mouth.

"She is! Now, you are going to go out there and 'find out' about this right now and you are never going to mention my name, do you understand? I'm _not _speaking to you, this conversation never happened. Now get out, before I change my mind and decide to tell you everything else Ayumi-chan has told me. None of its pretty, in fact, I'm tempted to tell you just to see the look on your face, but, frankly, I'm not that cruel. I could be though; it would be so very easy for me to be." Ai added, softer near the end and her eyes took on a slightly glazed look, as though she was seeing something other than the Western Prince and a small scullery.

Heiji gaped at her a few moments longer before opening the door and retreating to his room. He sat on the bed, fingering a ribbon that _she'd _left in there by accident.

_My God, what have I done?_


	23. Goodnight

"Kazuha-neechan?" Ayumi asked in weak sounding voice and Kazuha sat up, turning towards the girl immediately. "Can you do me a favor?"

"Of course, honey, do you need some more tea?" Kazuha asked, gesturing towards the empty cup on the small wooden nightstand that wasn't much more that a crude table.

Ayumi shook her head. "No. Can you call Heiji-niichan to come visit me? I've been...fighting with him and I don't want to leave things on a bad note...."

Kazuha looked hard at her. "Don't think things like that or you'll never get better! And of course I'll get him for you. Will you be okay by yourself or do you just want me to send someone after him?"

Ayumi smiled blearily. "I'll be fine, you can go get him. He's probably missing you since you've been taking care of me."

Kazuha brushed the girl's bangs back from her forehead. "I'm sure he hasn't missed me too much. Besides, you're more important than that ahou right now. I'll be back in not too long."

Kazuha left the room and Ayumi sighed and sagged against her pillows. Even as bad as her big brother figure was behaving right now, he'd always been kind to her and she couldn't bare the thought of leaving this world without telling him how much he meant to her. He was the one who pulled her back from becoming like Ai, cold as ice because of what the world had done to her.

_The man dropped the body of her father to the ground, beaten and bloody and turned to grin at Ayumi and her mother, who were huddled in the corner._

"_Your turn, bitch. You can go first, so you won't have to see what I have in store for your pet." He said leering at Ayumi as he gestured to her mother. On unsteady legs, the woman walked over towards her captor. But at the last second, she ran towards the door and screamed as loud as she could. A moment later, the windows in all the nearby houses lit up, candle light flickering through the rice paper windows as the candle-holders moved through their houses and to their doors._

"_Shit." The man said, grabbing up the young mother and slapping her across the face. "You'll pay for that, bitch. I'll be back, for you and your pet." _

_Then he dropped her and fled from the house, dodging neighbors and making off towards the woods._

_The villagers were sympathetic, but they had enough trouble feeding their own families. The Yoshida women, it seemed, were on their own. Her mother tried to work, to provide for her daughter, but she fell ill and soon enough, it was Ayumi on the streets, taking on what work her small body could manage and even some it obviously couldn't. But she worked hard and tried desperately to nurse her mother back to health. But it was never enough._

_Then one night, he returned. _

_They were no match for him, a small child and a sick widow. Right before her eyes, he raped and killed her mother. And then he turned to her. _

"_Come closer, my new pet. Behave and maybe I won't kill you." He crooned._

_Whimpering, Ayumi shifted slightly towards him and he grinned, grabbing her up. And then he laughed as he took her, muffling her screams with his hand. After he finished with her, he smirked._

"_A new pet for me to play with, I couldn't ask for more." He scoped her up and left into the night._

_For several months she lived in fear of him, waiting in his dingy campsites while he went into towns, robbing and raping more people as he did. Sometimes, he brought back other girls like her, but they were not as smart as her, they did not know how to keep quiet or how to stay inside the tent. He murdered every single one of them within a week of when he'd gotten them. And he always made Ayumi watch._

"_This is what will become of you should you disobey me, my precious pet." He had said as he'd skinned one girl alive in front of her._

_But one night, it seemed he approached the wrong couple. _

_They were walking down a path near his campsite and the woman had caught his eye. She was pregnant, by the looks of her and her assumed partner was with her, helping her navigate in the dark. The man was slight looking and had an overall nice look about him and her captor thought them to be easy pickings. He sprung out of a patch of shrubs and tackled the man to the ground._

"_Kaito!" the woman had exclaimed, coming closer to try and assist him and the man's elbow came back, hitting her right in the stomach. She gasped and collapsed._

"_Aoko! Damn you!" the man, Kaito, presumably, yelled and in a couple of moves, had Ayumi's torturer on the ground, bloody and lifeless. Ayumi crept out of the tent, a wad of ripped linens she had had collected to use as bandages in her hands._

"_Oniisan?" she said, her voice barely a whisper, but Kaito had looked up from where he was fretting over his companion. "Do you need these?"_

_She held out the linen and shut her eyes tightly, half expecting a blow for sticking her nose in where it didn't belong. But he simply took the cloth from her and gestured for her to sit with him._

"_Mind giving me a hand, ojousan?" he asked and she nodded. Aoko continued to alternate between moaning and screaming in agony as Kaito tried to stem the blood flow from between her legs._

_Aoko lost her first child that night. But the castle had gained a new child for the scullery crew. She was a quiet one, she didn't get in the way but she was always nearby, ready to lead a hand to anyone who needed it and she was hard worker. And one day, she helped out a young man who she had yet to learn was the kingdom's only prince. _

_And things were never the same for her again._

A knock sounded on the door, pulling her from her memories as Kazuha poked her head in.

"Ayumi-chan? Heiji's here to see you." She said and Ayumi noted how the older girl hadn't put any sort of honorific on his name.

"Let him in, please. Can I talk to him alone?" Ayumi asked and Kazuha nodded.

"Of course, take all the time you need." Heiji walked in then and the door closed behind him.

"Ayumi-chan. How are you feeling?" Heiji asked pulling up a nearby chair and sitting on it next to her bed.

She coughed. "Don't tell Kazuha-neechan this, but not so good. I'm not going to make it, Heiji-niichan."

Heiji glared at her. "With that kind of attitude-."

"I know, don't lecture me. We all know it's true, just because all of you like to live in a fantasy world doesn't mean I have to or want to. But let's just say I do die, I didn't want the last thing you remembered about me to be that I'd been ignoring you for several months. And speaking of living in a fantasy world; isn't that where Kazuha-neechan is living now? In a world where you love her?" Ayumi questioned with a fierce, but dull, glare.

"Ayumi-chan-." Heiji started only to be cut off.

"Don't! I don't want to hear excuses! I've always looked up to you and it's like being told I've been looking up to a lie, what you're doing! Please! Promise me, promise me you'll stop!" Ayumi said, breaking down into sobs.

"Ayumi-chan, I know what I was doing was wrong, but I promise you, I really do love her, it just took me awhile to figure it out. Really. Don't tell anyone, but I do. I love you too, like the little sister I never had. So don't you give up and die on me, you hear? You've got to keep fighting it, you're stronger than this!" Heiji said, taking the girl's tiny hand in his larger ones.

Ayumi yawned. "I am, aren't I? I've proven that, at least. But you can only stand so much and I'm so tired. If I die, promise me you won't cry, Heiji-niichan."

Heiji took a deep breath. He'd always hated it when he saw this side of the girl. He hated it when he saw it in Ai, hated it when he saw it on the faces of Genta and Mitsuiko. It was look of defeat, a look only gained by seeing the horrors that the world had to offer and living through it. He never wanted to see it again, but every time he thought it was gone, it came back again, like a curse. "You _aren't _going to die, Ayumi-chan. But if it'll make you feel better, I promise, I won't cry."

Ayumi smiled. "Good. I'm sleepy, Heiji-niichan, so you can leave, if you want to. Don't worry too much about me, if I do die, at least I'll get to be with Touchan and Kaachan again."

She leaned back further against her pillows then and Heiji got up and exited the room as Ayumi's eyes drifted shut.

She would never open them again.

* * *

**Ack, don't kill me! I really, _really _didn't want to kill her off. In fact, it took me no less than a week to actually manage to do it. If any of you think you feel bad about it, think again! I feel twice as bad! She'll haunt me along with all the rest of them! Her name is on The List! Wah!!! I'm sorry!!!**

**KIRBY: I was all for killing her, personally. It will help the story and the story is my concern, as the muse. I have to put the story first. It really kills katie, though, she _hates _killing people off, she's the writer, her concern is herself, her characters, and last, but not least, her readers and reviewers. You guys are the best. But don't be too hard on her, she's a weak one.**

**Am not! *sticks out tongue* As for why this chapter is so late, I'm sure you all know the reason, sometimes, ff is such a bitch! I mean, I've been thrown completely off schedule! But, even though it wasn't my fault, as an apology, you get two chapters tonight. So review and then click that little arrow. You know the one.  
**


	24. Funeral

The funeral was big affair, considering it was only for one little child who'd worked in the scullery. Even King Heizo and Queen Shizuka had shown up to pay their respects. It was held in the large chapel usually reserved for nobles.

Kazuha choked on tiny sobs in the front pew and Ran patted her on the back soothingly, despite the fact tears were streaming down her face as well. On the other side of Kazuha, Aoko and Kaito sat; Aoko had turned away from the service towards the beginning and pressed herself so close to Kaito she looked as though she were in his lap. The room was sea of black and Ran, Kazuha, and Aoko all wore loose fitting black dresses instead of the tight, laced affairs everyone else seemed to be sporting. The reason behind it was to hide the young maid's slowly growing stomach and not make it overly obvious by her being to only one wearing such a gown.

"...and may she rest in peace." The preacher finished and the assembled group rose, the pale bearers heading towards the tiny coffin and lifting easily.

The royal family began exiting first, Heiji dressed in a stiff black number as he walked behind his father while sending worried glances towards Kazuha, who was still sobbing. His own eyes were dry; if he was nothing else, he was a man of his word. The next to begin to leave were Kaito and Aoko, the former was all but carrying the latter as they filed behind the Hattori clan.

Kazuha took one step and found that she was unable to continue. Instead, she dropped to her knees, still sobbing softly as her hands fisted on the ground. Heiji saw and made a move to go back for her, but, behind his wife, Kudo Shinichi shook his head at Heiji before pulling the girl to her feet and guiding her out behind Kaito and Aoko, Ran trailing beside them fretfully, one hand over her mouth to stifle her own sobs and the other fisted on her husband's shirttail.

They buried her in the church's graveyard. As they were lowering the coffin into the ground, Genta and Mitsuiko broke out of the respective embraces of Sonoko and Keiko and raced towards the grave.

"Don't put Ayumi-chan underground, she'll be afraid!" Genta yelled, his eyes watering.

"Ayumi-chan _hates _the dark; you can't...you can't put her-!" Mitsuiko started only to cut himself off.

Ai detangled herself from the crowd and walked over to the two boys, a cold expression on her face that was at odds with the tears in her blue eyes.

"Don't worry, I lit a candle for her, so she won't be afraid, she has plenty of light. So come on and let's go back with Sonoko-neesan, she needs you two to be strong for her, because you two are the men in her life. You don't want to let her down, do you?" Ai said softly and the boys got hard looks in their eyes as they shook their heads and wiped away their tears, before going back over to where their master was waiting.

After that, the castle staff was given an off day and they all retreated to their rooms to patch themselves back together and steel their hearts in preparation for the next day. Because tomorrow, it would have to be as though Ayumi had never been there and had never died. The castle must continue on without her. That was simply how it had to be.

Kazuha shook off her friends and retreated to her room, curling up on her bed and crying until she had no tears left. A knock came on the door and she ignored it. It opened anyways and her bed sank in as someone sat on it beside her. She opened her eyes to see Heiji looking down on her, no longer dressed in the black clothes he'd worn earlier.

"Don't worry, it'll be okay. Eventually, it'll be okay." Heiji said, brushing her bangs out of her eyes.

She scooted closer to him and wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face in his stomach. He leaned back to make the position more comfortable for her and she shook but did not cry.

"Kazuha? I know this isn't a good time to talk about it, but something seems off about you lately." Heiji said and Kazuha didn't even twitch.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I meant to tell you, I really did but there was so much happening and -_oh my gosh, Ayumi-chan..._" Kazuha said, trailing off and continuing to sob dryly.

"Tell me what, 'Zuha?" he asked, using the affectionate nickname in hopes of bringing her spirits up a little bit.

"I'm pregnant. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'll leave if you need me to, I'm so sorry." She said, her words muffled by his shirt.

Heiji put his arm around her shoulders. "You aren't going anywhere. You're staying right here with me. I swear, I'm going to take care of you. I'm not going to let anything happen to either of you."

Kazuha's sobs quieted after awhile and she began to drift off towards the land of dreams.

"I love you, Heiji." She whispered as her eyes fell shut.

Heiji took a deep breath, before letting it out slowly. "I love you too, you silly girl."


	25. Letter

Kazuha took a deep breath before opening the door. Inside, Ayumi's room looked actually the same as it always had, except the little girl was not sitting in her bed, her blue eyes lighting up when she saw who had come to see her. _"Kazuha-neechan!"_

Kazuha choked back as sob before moving to the small chest that the child had kept her clothes in. She opened it and took out several muslin and brown colored dresses. Then she pulled out two pairs of tall white socks and three pairs of tiny white undergarments. Lastly, she pulled out a pair of scuffed up, black shoes and then the trunk was empty. She set the pile of clothes to the side and moved to strip the bed. She put the pile of sheets and quilts on top of the clothes and was about to carry them downstairs to Miwako, who worked the servant's laundry, when she saw a piece of paper sticking out from underneath the mattress. She pulled it out and saw her name scrawled on the front in what appeared to be black candle wax.

She opened it and saw it was dated two days before she had died.

'_Kazuha-neechan, if you are reading this then I did die. I'm sorry, because it probably made you sad. It probably made Ai-chan and Genta-kun and Mitsuiko-kun sad too, didn't it? I'm kind of glad I did die though, even though I feel bad for making everyone cry. But that's not why I had to write this. I hope you can read it, I can barely see what I'm writing. But I have to let you know. Heiji-niichan has been pulling a horrible prank on you! He forced Sonoko-neechan to team up with him to make you fall in love with him! He didn't want even one person in the castle not to like him. He's been lying to you this whole time and he made sure that no one was allowed to tell you. But if I'm dead I don't have to do what he says anymore. He isn't a bad person, but he's a grown up, and most grown ups are stupid. Don't be too mad, Kazuha-neechan, but don't let him keep tricking you! I'm sorry I have to tell you this but he doesn't really love you.'_

With a choked cry, Kazuha dropped the letter and ran out of the room.


	26. Truth

A loud knocking sounded on her door and Ran went to answer it, tying her robe around her waist and dropping her towel over her wet hair.

"Hello?" she called out, opening the door a crack. When she saw it was Kazuha, her face red and her eyes full of tears.

"Kazuha-chan! Come in; don't stand out in the hall like a stranger!" Ran exclaimed, opening the door and hurrying her friend in.

Shinichi stood in the adjoining washroom, out of sight from the distraught maid who was now perched on Ran and his bed.

"Kazuha-chan? Is this about Ayumi-chan?" Ran asked sympathetically, sitting down next to her friend.

Kazuha shook her head. "No....yes......not really....Oh Ran-chan, you won't believe what I have just discovered!" she sobbed and Ran looked at her worriedly.

"What is it?" Ran asked, dreading the answer.

"I found a letter.....in Ayumi-chan's room. It was addressed to me and it said that Heiji has been playing me for a fool this whole time! I can't- I just....Oh, Ran-chan!" Kazuha broke down again and Ran wrapped her arms around her. "Ayumi-chan had no reason to leave me upsetting things that were merely lies or rumors, she wouldn't have done that. It must be true, but-I love him, Ran-chan....I'm carrying his baby!..."

"Shh, shh. I told him again and again not to this to you Kazuha-chan, but he wouldn't listen and I couldn't tell you, you know I couldn't or I would've told you, you know that, right?" Ran said, holding her friend.

"I was the only one who didn't know, wasn't I? Everyone else knew and they were all laughing at poor Kazuha-chan who couldn't even tell she was being played!" Kazuha said.

"No one was laughing, Kazuha-chan. Not even Heiji was laughing, you changed him, Kazuha-chan, he's different now. He really does care about you, he's just afraid to show it." Ran pleaded with her and Kazuha shook her head.

"I-I have to get away from here, Ran-chan, I can't see him anymore, I can't." Kazuha said and Ran looked at her friend with sorrow in her heart.

"Kazuha-chan, in your condition, I don't think you should go anywhere." Ran started.

"I can't stay here, I can't. I'd rather die; I'd rather kill us both." Kazuha said.

After moment's pause, Ran sighed. "I don't want you far away, just in case. But I know of a place not far from here. It's protected by the fey, but as long as your motives for going there are pure, you should have no trouble. Have you heard of the Seven Hidden Trails? They lead to Reiner Mountain, which is where they say the feyfolk change the seasons from one to the next. There's a small cabin along one of the trails, it's got a bed and bath and it's always well stocked with food and drink, but no one's ever there when I've been there. Akako-chan told me it's a fey cabin where humans a free to stay as long as they have a good reason."

"Ran-chan, you're much too good to me. When can we leave?" Kazuha said, sniffling and drying her eyes.

"Nonsense, anyone else would do the same. We can leave tonight, if that is okay with you. I won't be able to stay with you for more than a couple of days though, Shinichi won't stand for it."

"I'll go get my things together then. Thank you, Ran-chan." Kazuha said, standing up.

"Of course, run along." Ran said and Kazuha slipped out the door.

Shinichi entered the room and went to sit beside his wife. "Damn him."

"He loves her, I know he does. He's got that look in his eyes, the same one that I see when I watch Kaito-kun look at Aoko-chan. The same one I know is in my eyes when I look at you." Ran said, looking up at him.

"I love you, Ran, you know that, right?" Shinichi asked, leaning in just enough to brush his lips against hers.

He pulled back and she smiled at him. "Of course I do, though I have no idea why. I'm nothing special. You deserve so much more than me Shinichi."

He pushed her back against they bed and leaned over her. "There is nothing more than you. You are everything. The sun and the moon and all the stars."

He kissed her again before pulling back, laughing as she whimpered slightly. "As much as I would love to stay and continue this _conversation_, I have a long overdo chat with Hattori. Don't leave without giving me time to say goodbye to you properly though."

Ran sat up and ran her fingers through her wet hair. "Of course. Make sure he realizes what an idiot he is. Don't pull any blows, Shinichi, he hurt her."

Shinichi sighed. "A double edged sword, Ran. It was a double edged sword. I'm sure he realizes that by now."


	27. Friend

Shinichi knocked on Heiji's door briskly and Heiji opened it after a couple of moments. "Hey, Kudo! I've got some good news to-"

Shinichi cut his friend, and he used that term quite loosely at the moment, off with punch to the face before pushing the other boy back into the room and shutting the door behind him.

"What the hell? Have you snapped, Kudo? I said I had good news and punch me right in my fucking face! Hell, that hurt...." Heiji said, rubbing his jaw as Shinichi glowered at him.

"Well then, what's your good news, before I give you the bad news? Hurry up, I don't have all day." Shinichi spat.

"I just wanted to let you know; it's not a game anymore, I'm in love with her. I can't believe I'm saying it out loud, but I am! I'm going to ask her to marry me..." Heiji trailed off, looking quite happy at the moment. Shinichi almost hated to ruin that for him, but he deserved it.

"Too bad she won't say yes. If you even get to tell her, that is. She knows, Hattori, it seems Ayumi-chan couldn't stand the thought of leaving her surrogate mother to your tender mercies. She left Kazuha-chan a note. She and Ran are leaving tonight." Shinichi said, his voice cold.

"W-what? But Ayumi-chan and I talked; she made me promise I wouldn't hurt Kazuha. She believed me, I know she did!" Heiji said, frantically.

"Idiot, Ayumi-chan died right after you left her room, you think she wrote the note after talking with you? She probably wrote it before hand, thinking she'd never get the chance to speak to you again. And it doesn't even matter now, does it? It's not like any of it was untrue. You've done this to yourself, Hattori!" Shinichi said angrily.

"It isn't my fault, I didn't know!" Heiji exclaimed and Shinichi punched him in the face again, knocking him to the ground.

"Didn't know? Didn't know! I warned you, Hattori, I fucking warned you that you'd get hurt too. But do you listen to me? Do you ever listen to your best friend, even when you **know **he's right? No, because you're just too damn full of yourself, I can't even bear to look at you!" Shinichi said, turning away. He reached towards the door handle before hesitating and dropping his hand to his side. "I never wanted it to come to this, Hattori, I was hoping you'd come to your senses before this happened. And, while you'll always be my friend, I have to side with my wife on this one. And my wife is siding with Kazuha-chan. When you make up with her, then we can go back to how things were. But until then....this will have to be goodbye."

Then Shinichi opened the door, stepped through it and closed it behind him, his footsteps echoing through the corridors as he walked away.

Heiji just sat on his floor, a hand still holding his wounded face as he considered what his friend had just told him. Then he got up and pulled on his coat before running out of the room and towards the room where the one thing he really wanted in life waited. But, even as he ran towards her, he knew she was already moving further and further away.


	28. Seek

After unsuccessfully pounding on Kazuha's door for ten minutes straight, only to discover she'd never been in there in the first place, Heiji set off to find her partner in crime, a certain Kudo Ran. He found her outside, talking with Aoko, who had been banned from working until the baby arrived and was contenting herself with watching her husband as he worked, in low voices.

"...I can't tell you, word will get around, but I promise you, it's a safe place, or as safe of one as there is. So pl- Oh, Hattori-kun." Ran said, straightening up when she saw the dark-skinned teenager.

Heiji knew that she knew that he knew, so he didn't bother beating around the bush. "Where is she?"

Ran looked at him sadly. "Go away, Hattori-kun, I'm not on your side in this. You had something going for you and you ruined it. I hope you're happy. I hope it was worth it to you. Goodbye."

She turned to leave and he grabbed her shoulder to stop her. She tensed up immediately and Heiji let go of her in shock. "You really distrust me that much, Ran-chan?" he inquired softly and Ran shook her head.

"You're in love, Hattori-kun. People do stupid things when they're in love." Ran said quietly and Heiji put his hand back on her shoulder hesitantly. She didn't so much as twitch.

"Where is she, Ran-chan? I-I need to _explain._ Yes, I'll admit this started out as a stupid game but it never felt like a game to me. Every time, I had to keep reminding myself that it was a game; that I was just pretending to be in love with her. And then, for a couple of days I forgot it was just a game and then it wasn't anymore, it was real and I can't lose her, Ran-chan. I can't."

Ran shook her head, slowly at first but then hard and faster. "She needs you, Heiji-kun, desperately. But you hurt her and she's already been through so much. I'm really not sure she's going to take you back. You understand that, don't you?"

"Yes. I promise, I'll never do it again, as long as I live. Please, just tell me." Heiji begged and Ran turned around to face him. "She's in the scullery. Ai-chan is hiding her until tonight, and then we're leaving. I'll be back, but she won't. I need you to talk her out of it, Heiji-kun. I'll take her if that's what she wants, but I don't want to send her off. I want her to stay."

Heiji let go of her and nodded. "I'll do my best, Ran-chan. And tell Kudo thanks for me, will you?"

And then Heiji turned and sprinted towards the kitchen and the scullery. And her too.


	29. Sorry

Heiji burst into the kitchen and went straight towards the scullery, ignoring Sonoko, who at first, tried to act as though nothing was out of the ordinary and then switched to screaming and cursing his name.

Heiji pulled open the now closed door to the back room and was surprised to see Ai standing in the doorway, a kitchen knife in her hand. "Give me one good reason to let you through, Heiji-san."

"Because it's not a game anymore, I need her." Heiji said, his head hung.

"You've always needed her, you idiot. I told you from the beginning that she'd break you in half, but you don't listen to me or anyone else! I should stab you right where you stand." Ai said and Heiji noticed Genta and Mitsuiko were not too far behind her, also armed with small kitchen knives and looking upset. Ayumi had thought of this young woman as her mother, they would defend her to their dying breath if that's what it took.

"No, don't Ai-chan. You'd be sent straight to the gallows, I'm not worth it." Came a faint voice and Heiji pushed by Ai, who made no move to stop him. She dropped her knife and clenched and unclenched her fists.

"I used to look up to you, but you're more of a child than me. That's not something I'm proud of." Ai whispered and no one caught it, no one ever did.

Kazuha was huddled in the furthest corner of the kitchen. She glared half-heartedly at Heiji when she saw him, but the effect was ruined by the tear trails on her face. Heiji moved closer and reached out and hand to her and she shrank away from it.

"Don't touch me! All this time, I thought you loved me! I let down my defenses and let you through and how am I repaid? With lies and pain! I hope you're happy with yourself, you broke me in so many ways, so many and I actually thought you loved me. I truly believed it. Don't look for me. I never want to see you again. And you'll never see us again, I'm leaving tonight and I'll kill us both before I stay here, so send your guards after me, death would be a welcome change from this hell. They'll have to put me in the gallows, for I refuse to bend to your will any longer." She said.

"Won't you let me explain, at least? I know I hurt you and I'm sorry, but, after those first couple of days, I never lied to you, I meant every word of what I said, I swear on my life." Heiji said and she shook her head violently.

"I don't care what you swear on! Just leave. Just leave me alone, I never want to see you again, as long as I live. Please, just let me go." She said and stood up, grabbing a burlap sack that he thought contained her few belongings and retreating up the servants' staircase and presumably to her room.

Heiji sighed but did not follow her. They say that if you truly love something, you have to let it go. And he did love her. He walked back out into the kitchen, ignoring the hostile stares of the children. He just wanted to go up to his room and try to make sense of this whole crazy mistake that had gotten way out of hand, but Sonoko would have her say, even if it killed her. Which, considering who it was she was speaking to, it could.

"Well, your plan worked perfectly, **Your Highness**, don't you feel good about yourself now? Don't you feel like you're such a great person? Don't speak to me! Don't even look at me! I feel dirty even standing close to you! It all worked out just like you planned except you're hurting too and I'm glad for it! Wallow in your misery, Hattori Heiji, Prince of the West! Wallow in it until it consumes you!" she said and Heiji didn't look up or even stop to acknowledge the rage filled cook.

"Okay, I will. Sorry I made you help me, Sonoko-chan; it wasn't a good thing to do. I'll understand if you don't forgive me." He said and Sonoko looked at his retreating back, shocked.

As he vanished from her kitchen, Ai stepped out of the scullery to stand beside her master. "I think that was the first time I ever heard him apologize. And he did it twice in less than five minutes too."

Sonoko nodded. "She sure did do a number on our boy, don't you agree?"

"Hmm, yes, but if he's already gone so far as to apologize, and in front of an audience, no less, then what do you think will happen when she leaves tonight? She doesn't seem very eager to forgive him, not that anyone can blame her." Ai said and Sonoko leaned back against her countertop, pondering the words of the child very seriously.

"Despite everything, I hope she forgives him and that they end up together. If less than a year together provides these kinds of results, then imagine what she could do with him if they were forever and always like Ran-chan and Shinichi-kun?" Sonoko said, glancing at the younger girl.

Ai smiled faintly. "You can only imagine the possibilities."


	30. Run

Ran stepped closer to her friend and straightened the hood around her head.

"There, that's better. Are you okay, Kazuha-chan?" Ran asked anxiously, her fingers twitching nervously.

Kazuha sucked it a ragged breath of air. "No, but I'm close enough. Let's leave, Ran-chan, before someone sees us."

"Of course. Here, let me help you." The other girls responded, hurrying forward to help the ponytailed girl onto one of the two small horses Kaito had lent them. He was the only one who knew where the where at the moment. He stood off to the side, his blue eyes twinkling in the moonlight as he watched them silently, his expression neither approving nor disapproving, merely blank.

As soon as Kazuha was safely atop the animal, Ran mounted her own horse and the two took of towards the back yards of the castle at a slow quiet pace. The pine needles strewn over the ground provided the perfect cushion for silence and they steered the mares towards the large clumps of them, Ran leading the way and Kazuha blindly following. Rational thought was all but beyond her at this point, she only knew that she must get away and that Ran was the best possible person to trust with her safety. Once upon a time, Heiji would've been that person but- She stopped her train of thought there, longing for the numbness o mind that people who'd been hurt often talked about. They had said they had stopped caring about anything, that they had simply _been_ until they recovered, alive, but not feeling. She wished with all of her heart for the blank non-feelingness; better that than this agonizing torture that threatened to rip her in half. She choked a sob and forcuse only on her friend's back as they bobbed through the trail they'd entered.

It was the fourth trail of what had been called The Seven Hidden Trails of the mountain. The trails and the mountain both were said not to be a place for humans, they were, instead, a place for the fairy; the fey, as most called them. Fairies hated to be called fairies, or so the said. If one overheard you call them by such, you would never be heard from again. So they were the fey and this was their place. But, above anyone else, Kazuha trusted Ran, and she claimed that this was a safe place.

After traveling for sometime, they came across a small hut alongside the path. Ran jumped down from her mare and then helped her friend off of hers.

"This is it, Kazuha-chan. Out behind it, there is a small spring for you to bathe in and wash your clothes in and it is well stocked with preserves and salted meats. If you run out, simply do not look for food again for another hour and some more will appear, I swear. We found the cabin; from what Akako-chan has told me, if you can find it, you are welcome. The fey will watch over you, you are safe."

Ran sighed then, looking older and tired and Kazuha thought that she had done this to the girls and felt bad for it. "I can stay for three nights, but I shall have to leave you on the morning after that. Shinichi; I promised him I would not leave him on his own for too long, you understand? I will come and check up on you often, of course, but you'll be out here on your own, are you okay with that? Truly?"

Ran took a deep breath before turning to look her friend straight in the eyes, determined to say what she had to. "No one blames you, Kazuha-chan. If you were to simply come back with me, I swear, Shizuka-sama would take good care of, whether you forgave her son or not. No one would dare think bad of you, we all know what happened. Please, is this truly what you want? Please, Kazuha-chan, don't do this, come back with me!"

Kazuha frowned. "I refuse to go back to that place, where he can control me. I'd be at his mercy, forced to dance for him again like some sort of puppet. I won't go through that again, Ran-chan, I'm unable, you understand? I can't see him again, I won't be able. It would break me even more to have to look at him and know that he had done this too me. I will never return, Ran-chan. Never."

Ran sighed, she'd expected no less, but she had hoped. "I do understand, Kazuha-chan. I really do. Let's get inside and have some tea to sooth our nerves. Then we should rest, it has been a trying day."

Kazuha smiled, though it was a mere shadow of her normal smile. "Yes, some tea would be nice, wouldn't it? You are right, as always, Ran-chan."

Ran led the girl into the small cabin, lighting a fire in the fireplace as they entered. It cast a soft glow about the room and Ran looked upon the fire and sighed again. "Not always, Kazuha-chan." She whispered to herself. "After all, I was wrong about you."


	31. Favor

Days passed.

The time had come for Ran to leave. She had her small amount of things together and was about to head out the door when Kazuha called her back.

"Ran-chan?" she said, faintly and Ran turned at once, looking even more fretful than before. She was worried about leaving her pregnant friend out her by herself, any good friend would be.

"Yes, Kazuha-chan? Have you decided to return with me after all?" Ran said hopefully.

Kazuha shook her head. "No, I have....I have a favor to ask of you. One last favor. I know I've asked so much of you already, but just this last thing is all I want from you. I swear."

Ran looked even more worried now and came to sit by the young maid. "And what is it?"

Kazuha took a deep breath. "Provided this child does not resemble Heiji overly much, I want...I want you and Shinichi-kun to take it back with you to the East and claim it as your own. No one will question it. Please, Ran-chan. I want better for this baby of mine then what I will be able to give it. I refuse to go to him for help. I realize that what I am asking is too much for me to have the right to ask, but Imust. Will you do this for me, Ran-chan? Please?"

Ran choked on her own words. "Kazuha-chan, I-."

"Please, Ran-chan? Please, I beg of you!" Kazuha exclaimed, tears already beginning to streak down her cheeks.

Ran took a deep breath. "I hope it will not come to that, Kazuha-chan. I hope with all my heart that you and Hattori-kun manage to work things out. But, if it proves as impossible as you think it is, then I will ask Shinichi to let me do this for you. But, please, do not force me to do this, Kazuha-chan. There is nothing in the world I can think of in this moment that I would rather not do."

Kazuha closed her eyes and let her head hang. "Then that is all I can ask of you. But it will never work, Ran-chan."

"I hope for your sake that you are wrong. Take care, Kazuha-chan." Ran said, standing up and turning to leave, only to pause at the doorway for a moment. She turned, as if to say something, but thought better of it and walked out. She heard the sound of Ran untying the horses, it had been agreed she'd take them both back with her, and then the thump of her jumping into the sadle. The hoofsteps were nearly silent as she rode away and soon, Kazuha was on her own.

"Take care, Ran-chan." Kazuha whispered to the silence around her.


	32. Swear

"_They went down this trail. Just follow it until you come across a small wooden cabin. That is, if you can find it. You do realize these trails are full of fey, right?" Kaito said, gesturing towards the path with one hand, the other on his reins._

"_Yeah, I know. Thanks, Kaito-kun." Heiji said, moving towards the entrance._

_Kaito sighed loudly, running his hand through his hair in a nervous gesture. "Don't thank me, Heiji-kun; just win her back, okay? I can't stand to see you like this. It breaks Aoko's heart too, she thinks of you like a brother."_

"_I know, Kaito-kun. I'm doing my best, I promise. I've never wanted anything more than this. I didn't even know I wanted this until I had it and lost it. Got any advice for me, Kaito-kun? I hurt her a lot; I don't have any idea what to say..."_

_Kaito smiled wearily. "Just be honest, Heiji-kun, because, in the end, it's up to her to take you back or not, no matter what you say. Might as well be honest. You were lying to her from the beginning, give her some truth now, she deserves that much, at least."_

"_I know. Thanks again, Kaito-kun, I owe you one." Heiji said, entering the trail._

"_You can pay me back by babysitting sometime! And if your kid's a girl, keep her away from my son!" Kaito yelled after him._

"_I think that's supposed to be my line!" Heiji yelled back._

_The last thing he heard before entering the stillness of the Trails was Kaito's guffawing laughter._

Heiji found the cabin easily, no interference from the fey at all, though he saw their shimmerings out of the corners of his eyes. He'd always been sensitive to the fey, as a child, his parents had often wondered if he would become part of their world like Akako had. But he was merely sensitive to them, able to see them if he wasn't looking, but no more than that. Sometimes, he could even hear their whimsical little conversations, their voices light and musical like harp strings being plucked.

He paused outside of the cabin, looking at it warily, as if it contained some horrible beast to be vanquished instead of a small pregnant woman with a loud voice. He stopped his horse, tying it to a nearby tree and hopped down, standing a couple of yards away from the hut and staring at it.

'_...what will he say, the arrogant lad, she was right to...'_

'_do you not feel any pity for him, he never even imagined...'_

'_i feel just awful about it but there is no help...'_

'_you are wrong as always, matsu. Don't you understand, mortals are always....'_

'_...soften her up a bit; the child would be better off...'_

Heiji heard the fey around him conversing, obviously aware of what was happening in their forest. He saw the shimmerings make their way towards the cabin he'd yet to approach and sighed. At least someone was looking out for him.

After a moment's more hesitation, Heiji swallowed his anxiety and walked up to the door.

'_the idiot, she'll never let him in...'_

'_...doesn't know about the back door...'_

'_...back door, child, back door!...'_

Heiji decided to look for a back door.

He found it quite easily, it led to a small spring out behind the cabin and it was warm from the lava that lay in wait inside Reiner Mountain. He was glad to know she hadn't been forced to bathe in freezing water; it wouldn't have been good for her health at all. He opened the back door gently and sighed when it neither creaked nor squeaked. The cabin was small, only two room to it, a small kitchen and a bedroom room with a fireplace that roared alive at the slightest spark, keeping the small abode toasty warm no matter the season. The door had opened into the kitchen and Heiji could hear the squeak of a rocking chair moving back and forth in the opposite room.

Heiji sucked in a deep breath and walked in.

"Kazuha?" he said and she whipped around so fast he was afraid she might have injured herself.

Immediately, her eyes teared up, just like the last time he'd seen her and she stood. "What are you doing here? I came here to get away from you! I never want to see your face again! Leave me alone, Heiji, haven't you hurt me enough?"

Heiji dropped to his knees, pressing his forehead to the ground. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm so sorry. But can you please, give me one last chance to explain? I swear, if you still want to hate me after I'm done, I'll leave, but I don't want this, Kazuha, I really don't. I love you."

Kazuha let out a strangled noise that sounded like a sob. "No, you don't, you liar. But I love you. And that's why it's so easy to hate you."

"Please, don't hate me. Please." Heiji begged, still on his knees.

"But I do hate you. I will do everything in my power to hurt you, to bring you down and destroy you, to make sure that you are never able to do this to anyone else ever again. Because I love you. I hate you because I love you. That's what makes this so easy." She said, and from his vantage point on the floor he could see the teardrops that feel from her eyes and landed there.

"One more chance, please, I'm begging you. You've already got me on my knees before you, something I swore I would never do for anyone. But I need to explain. I know what I did was wrong, but you don't understand, Kazuha...." Heiji said, and was surprised to find that his own voice sounded as choked as hers, thought he had no tears on his face.

He heard her take a deep breath. "Fine, fine, explain. But if, and when, it isn't enough, I want you to leave and never come back. I never want to see your face again. I want you to forget you ever met me, forget both of us, do you understand?"

"If those are your terms, then I have no choice, do I?"

Heiji didn't look up as he began to speak in a tired voice. He didn't want to see her face as he explained how he had hurt her.. "I'll admit, it did start out as a game, I heard you didn't like me and I was childish enough to care that just one person didn't think I was great. So I ordered Sonoko-the cook-to help me win your heart. But then I met you and I don't know what happened. One day, everything was going according to plan, and the next I just couldn't look away from you. It was like nothing I've ever felt before. Everyone was telling me this whole time "Don't do this, Heiji, don't do this." But I wouldn't listen and I'm sort of glad I didn't, because I would've never met you if not for what has happened."

Heiji breathed in deeply then, pausing to see if she had anything to add. When she remained silent, he continued. "But I didn't want it to end like this. After I realized that I couldn't live without you, I made a new plan, one that involved me and you, married, without you ever knowing I had tricked you for a few weeks towards the beginning. I was happy and I wanted to stay that way, but it was foolish to think I could hide forever. Ayumi-chan wrote that letter before she talked to me, probably thinking she wouldn't get a chance to talk with me before....But she did! I promised her, I swore that I would be good to you, that I loved you. But she didn't get a chance to get rid of it. Please, you have it all wrong, Kazuha. I love you, I swear I do. I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"Please, just stop. Just because you want to do the right thing about this doesn't mean you have to sit here and lie to me. I've got this handled; I don't need your pity." Kazuha sobbed out.

Heiji looked up. "You think I _care _about doing the right thing? If I cared about doing the right thing at all, I would've never done this in the first place. And what do you mean you have it handled? Do you plan on raising that kid on your own, with no home and no job to support you? Don't be stupid, Kazuha, I'm a horrible liar. I love you, I mean it. Now will you just accept that and forgive me?"

Kazuha shook her head rapidly as she cried. "You don't, you don't. Ran-chan's going to take this baby and then I'm leaving and I'm never coming back."

"Neechan isn't doing any such thing! And I do! I love you! Want it louder? **I love you! **I'll go scream it from the rooftops if that's what it takes! I'll run through the castle in the nude with only a sign on that says 'I love Kazuha!' on it! I'd do anything, anything, just ask me. Please, just forgive me. Please!" Heiji said, standing up.

Kazuha hiccupped pathetically. "Hold me close. Tell me you'll never do this to me again. Promise me you won't ever hurt me like this again, that'll I'll never see you looking at anyone but me. Tell me you'll never regret what happened. If you can promise me all of that, on your honor, then I can believe you."

Heiji smiled and stepped closer, pulling her against him in a tight embrace. "I swear, on my honor and my life, that I will never hurt you again. My eyes will never stray to anyone else, because you are perfection. I'll never regret choosing you, because I don't want anything else other than what I have right here in my arms right now. I love you." He whispered and she sagged against him.

"I love you too. But I still feel so broken." She whispered.

"I'll fix you. You don't need to worry about anything, because I'm going to take care of you." Heiji said, enjoying the feeling of her being back in his arms.

"Do you swear?" she said faintly and he smiled against her hair.

"Yeah, I swear."

* * *

**Hello everyone! After this, we have exactly five chapters left! Yay!**

**On another note, today is my birthday and I really want to finsih this story soon, so, as a present to myself, you all get a second chapter! So review for me, my dear reviewers, click the little arrow, rinse, and repeat. :P  
**


	33. Permission

They came home that night and Heiji tucked Kazuha into his bed, waiting until she fell asleep before sneaking out. He went towards the throne room, where he knew his mother would be, still awake even though the sun had sunk hours ago.

He walked in without knocking, he never did, and the queen looked down on him from her tall chair.

"Heiji!" she exclaimed, standing up and moving in to embrace him. He hugged her back awkwardly, his mother only showed him affection when they were alone and, being the ruling family of the West, that wasn't a often occurrence.

"You had the whole castle worried sick over you, my son. Please tell me you have come to your senses." She said, backing away.

Heiji shook his head. "Mother, I want to ask your permission to marry Kazuha-san, the chamber maid." He said formally.

Shizuka reached her hand up to ruffle her son's hair. "Even if I said no, you would do as you please anyways. I'll talk to your father, Heiji, run back up to the poor girl in case she wakes up and discovers you aren't there. How traumatic that would be!"

Heiji grinned widely. "Thank you, Mother, really."

He ran out the door and Shizuka smiled to herself, her child had turned into a man over night. She could still remember him as a dark skinned child, running about with the servants' children as if it did not matter at all. Visiting nobles had scoffed at the King and Queen's lack parenting when it came to social classes, but they remained firm. All people were created equal. It was no wonder the boy had ended up with his own maid.

"Ootaki." She said and her most rusted of servants and her only bodyguard was at her side in a moment.

"Yes, Shizuka-san?" Ootaki said, his grin hidden.

"Call my husband to me and inquire with Akako-san about the most auspicious day for marriage. I have work to do, and so do you." She said with a small, faint smile.

"Of course, Shizuka-san, right away."


	34. Ring

Kazuha awoke the next morning in a bed she'd become familiar with in the past few months. It was a place she'd never expected to be again. As soon as she opened her eyes, she saw the green eyed stare of the prince on her and she averted her eyes, but did not turn away.

"Please don't do that." Heiji said softly and she turned her eyes back to him. He smiled at her, not his familiar grin, but a softer smile, like she was accustomed to seeing when Shinichi watched his beloved wife.

"I've got something important to ask you, and, while I realize it's a little soon, I can't wait any longer to have it out in the open. Kazuha, I meant every word I said yesterday. _Every_ word. Will you marry me?" He said, producing a ring from behind his back.

Kazuha felt the familiar sting of tears in her eyes. "Every logical, working part of me is screaming at me to say no, but my heart hasn't but working properly for months, and I've learned that being logical doesn't suit me anyways." She said quietly. "So, yes, I'll marry you, Heiji. Because I love you, and that's what makes it so easy."

Heiji grinned widely then pulling her into his arms in a fierce hug. "Thank you, thank you so much." He whispered fervently in her ear. "Can I kiss you?"

Kazuha gulped. "Only if I get the ring afterwards."

He pulled her in and it was like the first time all over again, shy, not knowing what would be pushing it too far, insistent, because she was his now, all of those things at once and she fell into it all the same.

He finally released his hold on her to pull the ring from its box and slide it n her finger. It was not overly showy, a moderate diamond bordered by two emeralds on a simple silver band, but she loved it all the same. It suited her, and it suited him as well. He dragged her back into his arms again, rest his head on her shoulder and his hands on her slightly extended belly.

"I love you, you understand that now, don't you?" He said and she leaned back against him.

"I don't understand it by any means, but I do accept it. When is the wedding?" she asked quietly, in that soft way of hers that he'd come to admire.

"I have no clue, go ask my mother. I asked her for her and Father's blessing last night and by now Ootaki and she have probably planned the entire thing, down to what kind of flowers will be in your bouquet." he said, shrugging as if it didn't concern him at all what his mother might have in mind. He'd go through most anything, as long as the end result was in his favor.

Kazuha shrugged out his embrace then, standing up and looking at him speculatively. "Did anyone see us come back last night?"

Heiji thought for a moment before shaking his head. "No, no one who I saw, anyways."

Kazuha straightened the dress she was wearing, finding it had been wrinkled while she was sleeping. "Then I need to go pay Ran-chan a visit."

Heiji's eyebrows furrowed and he caught her wrist before she could move away. "That reminds me, what was tht about Neechan taken your baby last night?"

"I wasn't going to put any child in that kind of situation if I could avoid it. I got Ran-chan to agree to take my baby once it was born, if it didn't look too much like you, and claim it as hers and Shinichi-kun's child. I didn't want her to have the kind of life she would've had if she had stayed with me." Kazuha said, looking at her feet.

Heiji glared at her. "So you would've let Neechan and Kudo run off with our kid without even telling me first? What if I'd wanted her to stay with me?"

Kazuha glared right back. "I didn't want her to stay with you, ahou, you had just finished breaking my heart; you think I would trust you with my child?"

"She's my child too!" he argued, standing up to face her.

"Yeah, well she's inside _my _stomach, so unless you'd like to be pregnant, back off! If you would like to enjoy the _wonders _of pregnancy, then be my guest, I'm curious as to how you plan to accomplish that though!" she said, moving closer and closer until she was right n his face.

His expression changed from angry to sheepish in a second and he did back off, stepping back from her and smiling apologetically. "You're right, sorry."

Her expression flickered to shocked and she looked down. "No, I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me. But it doesn't even matter now, does it? Ran-chan didn't want to take her in the first place and she's probably been fretting over it ever since. I need to go tell her to stop worrying herself into a tizzy."

Heiji nodded. "I'll bet Kudo would appreciate that. I'll....I'll be waiting for you."

Kazuha smiled at him widely. "That's good to know." She headed towards the door, only to pause as she reached it, her hand hovering over the handle. "Thank you, for coming to get me. Even though I didn't want you to."

"No reason to thank me, it's because you didn't want me to that I had to, you understand?" He replied, leaning back against the bed.

She smiled, placing her hand on the knob and turning it, opening the door. "Yeah, I do." And then, without another word, she walked out the door, closing it softly behind her.

Heiji looked up, seeing a blue shimmering pass above his head.

"Thank you." He whispered.


	35. Wedding

"Oh, Ran-chan, Aoko-chan, is this really such a good idea?" Kazuha asked as Ran went about doing her hair. She had already gone her make up done and was in the customary white wedding gown that Shizuka had insisted she wear, despite the fact that it looked far too ornate for a young maid soon-to-be princess. Or, at least it did in Kazuha's opinion.

"Of course it is. The pre-marriage jitters are just setting in, you'll be fine, as long as you don't faint." Aoko said, not even glancing away from the mirror she was in front of. She twisted her hair up into an elaborate bun before sticking a white rose in it to complete the look; Kaito had insisted.

"You wouldn't have agreed if you weren't sure of it, remember that. Besides, if we wait any longer, the dress won't fit anymore, your daughter isn't going to stop growing so that you can put off being married to the only man you're ever going to love anyways." Ran said, finally done with the other girl's brown locks and she stepped back to take a look at her own handy work. "Its you, for sure."

Kazuha admired the fancy ponytail her hair had been pulled back into, higher than she normally wore her hair and it twisted around gracefully, as if it had just cascaded into the perfect arrangement. "Speaking of my dress, should I really be wearing white? By now, everyone knows I'm not any sort of virgin."

"You think anyone is going to say anything when the only man you've ever been with is the man your about to marry?" Aoko asked, coming over to stand by the other two. The two light pink bridesmaids' gowns offset the white of the bride's dress in an effect that they had all applauded Shizuka for.

"That is, unless you've been hiding something, Kazuha-chan." Ran said, a devious look on her face.

"That's riduclous and you know it!" Kazuha said, a blush rapidly appearing on her cheeks. "Heiji was my first, Aoko-chan can vouch for me!"

Aoko nodded. "Yes, unfortunately, I can. I hope you know you nearly killed me and Ru-chan both with that stunt."

"I had no idea you planned on reacting that way to it! Speaking of Ru-chan, how is he?" Kazuha asked and Aoko smiled, love in her eyes now that she was thinking of her child.

"Akako-chan is watching him. Or she said she's watching him, I honestly believe she's probably having the fey do it for her, it is her way. But I trust her inexplicably."

"Girls, it's time! Are you all ready?" Kaito called, hand over his eyes as he walked into the dressing room.

"Yes, now take your hand off your eyes, stupid." Aoko said, a grin on her face.

Kaito removed his hand and smiled fondly at his wife. "You look lovely." He said to her and then turned to face the other two. "You all do. But I'm afraid you must now go and share your beauty with the rest of the kingdom, though unworthy they may be."

"Yes, yes, quite unworthy." Ran agreed with a smile.

They lined up in order, Kaito and Aoko at the front, followed by Ran and Shinichi, who informed them that Heiji's version of wedding jitters was much more amusing than Kazuha's could ever be, and then the bride herself, in all her fancy, sparkly glory. There had been some argument over the best man early on; apparently, Heiji owed Shinichi and Kaito equally as much, but in different ways. In the end, he consulted with Akako and came to the conclusion that Shinichi would give the better speech, and by better, she meant least embarrassing.

Kaito and Aoko exited as their cue came, walking down the isle jollily. Shinichi and Ran followed, doing equally as well, though their gait was more refined than the other's had been. Then, upon her cue, Kazuha walked out into the chapel that she had knelt in to pray so long ago and faced the entire kingdom, and more importantly, him. He waited for her next to Shinichi fidgeting, but smiling broadly, ignoring the stares and whispers from the nobles come to attend his wedding. They were all becoming afraid that the princes of the North and South, Edogawa Conan and Hondou Eisuke respectively, though the former was still much too young to marry, would follow their counterparts lead and marry peasants as well.

Kazuha refrained from running down the isle and did not look at all the people scrutinizing her, she only had eyes for him. They met at the altar and the ceremony went on, simple and peaceful as it could be with every eye that could fit in the chapel on them.

The wedding ended with the "I do"s and a kiss that was almost too hot for some of their older guests before they moved into dining room for lunch and a speech from the best man.

Shinichi stood up from his seat after everyone had entered, ruffled Conan's hair, who had attended the wedding hoping to see more of the action he'd been told he'd missed, and walked up to the raised platform at the front of the room. "The first thing I think I should say before I start this is, Hattori Heiji is an ass. He is possibly the biggest ass you will ever meet. But, as he happens to be my best friend, I'll move on. As long as I've known him, he's scoffed at the idea of love or anything even resembling it really. When I married my wife, the first thing he said to me was "Aww man, Kudo, why'd you have to go and get married before we even had any real fun?" And, while eventually he did admit, or at least agree, to the fact that my wife and I are in love, he never much thought he would ever have that kind of relationship with anyone. And then came in Kazuha-chan. We all know how _that _story goes. So, back to what I said at the beginning, Hattori's an ass. But we all put up with him, so either he's got some sort of redeeming qualities or we're all masochists. Good luck, Kazuha-chan, living with him, you're going to need it." And then Shinichi walked down from the stage laughing loudly with his wife and Kaito as they moved towards the table.

Meanwhile, Heiji leaned over to growl at Akako. "And how was that the lease embarrassing one?"

"If you had chosen Kaito, his wife and he would've conspired together to and done things that would haunt your nightmares for years to come. Aoko-chan holds a grudge, Ran-chan does not. You are lucky I like you, Heiji-kun, or I would've told you to pick Kaito and enjoyed myself."

Heiji decided that he liked being on the sorceress's good side and sat back down.


	36. Birth

Birth was not an easy affair for Kazuha.

The midwives were frantic and the servants were as well as Kazuha struggled to bring her child into the world for sixteen hours straight. Lesser women had died during the same process and she nearly did as well, but she held on tightly, sweating and cursing and crushing Heiji's hand during the time he was allowed to be with her. She swore she had not lived through all of this heartache and pain only to die after it was all coming to a close; she refused.

But all the resolve in the world could not keep her from screaming in agony and occasionally even convulsing n pure, unadulterated pain. It was at those times that Heiji would turn to the midwives, shouting for them to do something for his wife. It was at those times that the servants were forced to remove Heiji from the room, lest he upset his wife enough to send her into panic, killing her baby and herself.

In the end, Heiji was there for it though, the moment she finally went limp and a baby's wail pierced the air. The midwife who had caught the babe wiped it off and held it high for all of them to see.

"It's a girl!" she proclaimed, loud enough for those in the hall to hear and they began running, some to tell those who could not be there themselves, and others to try and open the door enough to peer at the baby girl that had nearly been in the middle of a horrible war between her parents.

After she'd been washed off, the babe was handed with much aplomb to Heiji, who held her like she was the most precious thing he'd ever seen or touched. Kazuha watched him closely from her bed, weak and weary after so many hours at hard labor. She was a petite girl, not up to long bursts of physical activity and she remembered how Aoko had been, confined to her bed for days on end and so tired she really had not wanted to move.

"Do you want to hold her?" Heiji asked her quietly and he shooed the servants and midwives out with a shirt flick of his hand, his other arm wrapped tightly around the small bundle that was his daughter.

Kazuha nodded and tried to sit up, only to find she did not have the strength. "Just show her to me, I'll hold her later. My arms would fail me if I tried now."

Heiji leaned over her, adjusting his grip so that she was looking the baby right in the face. The infant blinked at her hazily, its blue eyes too large for its face. Kazuha wished she had the green eyes of her father, but she'd been told all babies started out with blue eyes, that they changed colors later. She hoped her daughter's eyes changed soon. The infant was pale like her mother, not dark skinned like Heiji but that might change too. Or it might not; Kazuha honestly didn't care either way.

"She's beautiful." Kazuha said, smiling at her husband. "I would never been able to stand to give her away. I would've come back and begged you to know your daughter, just so I could share with you how perfect she was."

Heiji smiled back. "She is perfect, isn't she? She's the most perfect little girl in the world. She's going to be spoiled rotten, anything she wants, I'm going to get it for her."

"It's not good to plan ahead about spoiling your children. If they're spoiled then they won't behave. You need to make plans to teach them right from wrong instead, and make sure it sticks. It sure didn't stick with you." Kazuha scolded lightly.

"I know, I know. My kids will be too smart to make stupid mistakes like their old man. Are we going to have anymore? You looked like that hurt you a lot, are you sure you want to go through that again? I'd never make you, you know." Heiji said, looking at her with measuring eyes, as if to see if she was truly okay after all her screaming and crying.

Kazuha took a deep breath. "It was worth it in the end, most things are, it seems. I'd do it again. What are we going to name her?"

Heiji frown in thought, looking down on the baby in his arms and struggling to find something that summed up how perfect and wonderful she was, laying there and watching the world. "I don't know. You decide. I'll name the next one."

Her mind turned in summersaults. _Name her Ayumi! _One part screamed. _Name her Hana, for Ran-chan! _Another part demanded. _Name her something fresh, no attachments. _A final part rationalized and she put her foot down. _Compromise._ "Akari, I want her name to be Akari. It is name that someone can be proud of. She will be someone to be proud of."

Heiji looked at the babe again and rolled the name around on his tongue. "Akari. Kari-chan." He stopped and smiled brilliantly, at both his daughter and wife. "I love it. I love her. I love you."

Kazuha sighed heavily, leaned back against the pillows and drifted off towards sleep. "I know. I love you too."


	37. Postlude

"You'll watch them closely, won't you, Akako-chan?" Kazuha asked fretfully, setting a now eight month old Akari in pen with an eighteen month Mamoru.

"Obachan!" Mamoru exclaimed, toddling over.

"Ru-chan! Be a good boy for Akako-obachan, I've got to hurry or I will be late. You will watch them this time, Akako-chan?" Kazuha asked again after speaking to the child.

"Yes, I only turned away for a second last time; I just had forgotten it was Kaito-kun's son I was dealing with." Akako said and Kazuha nodded, kissing her daughter's head and ruffling Mamoru's hair before racing off towards the main dining room. Shinichi and Ran had left for the past three months to go back to the Eastern castle and had just returned, claiming good news. They had called all of their friends to hear it and Akari had not wanted to cooperate with her mother that morning, running the young woman later than she had even dared to imagine being.

She threw open the doors and raced over to sit beside Heiji, who was grinning infuriatingly.

"Kari-chan give you trouble?" he asked, still grinning.

"Yes, and who was no where to be found? You, of course." Kazuha said, trying to be upset and failing.

"I was busy trying to get Kudo to spill, but he wouldn't breathe a word. Neechan is coming out in just a minute. I heard they brought the squirt with them too." Heiji said back, the squirt referring to the young Northern prince, Conan, whom Shinichi and Ran were fond of.

As predicted, Ran came out onto the raised platform of the dining room, holding both Shinichi and Conan's hands in her own. Conan immediately broke free and went to hug Heiji around the neck quickly, before crawling onto Kazuha's lap and asking about his new favorite person, Akari.

"Is she bigger now?" he asked excitedly.

"Oh, yes, she's much bigger. She's even starting to crawl. Pretty soon she'll be walking and then she can play with you and Ru-chan." Kazuha said.

"Really? Can we go see her after Ran-neechan's done talking?" Conan asked, bursting with excitement.

"Of course. You know you're always welcome to come up and visit with us, Conan-kun." Kazuha said, smiling broadly.

"My mother said that too. She said she wants me and Kari-chan to get married but I told her that Kari-chan's just a baby and babies can't get married. Everyone knows that." Conan said and Heiji frowned.

"Hey, you tell your mom that we don't want anymore of this marriage talk until Akari's older, and that it'll be up to her, got it, squirt?" Heiji said and Conan mock-saluted.

"Yes sir!"

"Okay everyone, we've got something important to say to you all!" Ran said loudly and the room quieted down. Conan slipped out of Kazuha's lap and migrated towards Kaito and Aoko. Kaito grinned at the young boy and pulled a yoyo out of his pocket to offer to him. Conan accepted eagerly and sat next to the older man, making the trinket spin towards the floor and then sail back up again skillfully.

"You guys are the first to hear this, so don't go telling everyone, okay? The big news is.....I'm pregnant!" Ran exclaimed and after a moment's pause, the assembled people cheered. Sonoko stood in the back of the room, smiling and leaning heavily a dark skinned man who was blushing heavily. His name was Makoto and he was a waiter as well as being one of Shizuka's new dasanteki, recruited to fill in for Kaito, who could not take as many missions now due to his family obligations. Ai, Genta, and Mitsuiko filed out of the kitchen to see what the commotion was about and were surprised to see the vast majority of the room's female population hugging Ran on the platform, Shinichi standing by and looking amused.

"...Ai-chan?" Mitsuiko said after a moment and the blonde child turned to him.

"Yes, Mitsuiko-kun?" she said, visibly more childlike than she had been a few months earlier. She felt as though the weight of all she had seen had been lifted slightly, in the months after Ayumi's death. The little girl was probably up in heaven, pulling the worries off her friend like children pull petals off flowers. Ai felt indebted to her for this act that she could not be sure was ever committed.

"I....I really like you, Ai-chan. Will you be my girlfriend?" he asked, blushing and thrusting a pilfered daisy in her direction. She took the flower, studying it carefully before reaching towards his hand with hers; their fingers did not lace, but neither let go.

Up on stage, Ran was fielding questions left and right. How far along was she? Had she gotten morning sickness? Was it to be a boy or a girl? The last one, she answered. "Our sorcerer, Agasa-san, said it will be a boy. I haven't decided on any names yet, there is plenty of time."

Kazuha backed up from the crowd and found Heiji and Conan waiting for her next to the stairs for the platform.

"Come on, Kazuha-baachan, I want to go see Kari-chan!" Conan exclaimed and she took him by the hand and led him to the castle's nursery, where Akako was keeping her promise and diligently watching the two children there. Conan ran off immediately to play with them, hugging them both before trying his hardest to encourage Akari to crawl to him, always being careful with the soft baby he'd become so fond of.

Kazuha leaned back into her husband's embrace and watched them. It had taken a long time to get here and come to this, but she found that she was no longer the broken girl Heiji had brought home with him that day that seemed so long ago now. She felt complete, in a way that left her satisfied and hoping that everything would stay the same. She knew it couldn't, but she hoped all the same. She hoped that they would all stay like this forever, Ran, basking in the glow of her pregnancy, Conan, wide-eyed and innocent as he played with a tiny Akari, who still needed her parents in everyway. And while she longed for that teenager that her daughter would turn into one day, the teenager she felt sure would fall in love with the dashing young man Conan would become, she also hoped that that daughter was a long ways away.

She had been young and naïve when Kaito had found her that day. Upon arriving at the castle, she had quickly gone from young and naïve to young and in love, which was a far more dangerous thing to be. Then she had become young and grieving, not only for Ayumi but for her unexpected pregnancy. Finally, she was just broken, neither young nor old because it made no difference to the broken. Now? Now she was somewhere in between, she had seen too much to be young, had too much life to be old. But she was happy, content. And, with Heiji by her side and her child, soon to be children if she had any say in it, around her feet, she felt as if she could always stay that way.

Not all fairytales have happy endings. But this one did.

And they all lived Happily Ever After.

* * *

**And that's it! It's finally over. I'm quite proud of it, myself.**

**KIRBY: Me too, I think I prefer this one over Project Arachne, more drama and conflict, and the ending isn't so bittersweet either, though I'm fond of Arachne's ending, personally. The spider-babies would not have turned out as perfect looking as Ran did. It would've been creul to allow her to have those children, to her and them.**

**Kirby-chin, we're not here to talk about Arachne, we're here to finish up **_**this **_**story.**

**KIRBY: Ah, yes, of course. Sorry. **

**It's okay. We'd like to throw in a special shout-out to s2lou-chan, who not only helped me and Kirby-chan when it came down to the important stuff, but also managed to review every single chapter, even on those occasions I double posted. And, she is also the reason behind the amount of Kaito/Aoko romance in this story; everytime you witnessed a sweet little moment between those two, you can know in your heart that it was written smiling about how much s2lou-chan would love it. So, everyone give her a round of applause and go read her stuff, you won't be disappointed. Also, ****IMPORTANT: This story may be taken down in the future, because I have plans to change the names to English ones and hand it in to a publisher to see what they think.**** Please, don't take this the wrong way, each and everyone one of your reviews meant the world to me, I swear, but I want to see if I can make something of myself, you know? But, if it helps to know, I'll save all of the reviews and keep the original sotry on my computer, so if it falls through, I'll put it right back up.**

**KIRBY: And, as our last piece of business, I'm proud to announce that, for my next Pet Project, I am considering revamping and extending the vampire!Heiji story. You can probably expect it sometime in the near future. Thanks again for all the support everyone and please continue to read and review!**

**Bye bye!**


End file.
